US Navy awards Bath Iron Works contract for 21st Flight III Arleigh Burke destroyer USS Robert R. Ingram.

The U.S. Navy has awarded Bath Iron Works the contract for the future USS Robert R. Ingram (DDG-149), extending production of the Flight III Arleigh Burke-class destroyer as demand for ballistic missile defense and fleet air defense missions continues to grow across multiple theaters. Announced on May 6, 2026, by Senator Susan Collins, the contract keeps one of the Navy’s most important surface combatant production lines active while the larger DDG(X) successor remains years away, preserving a critical industrial base tied directly to U.S. naval readiness and missile defense capacity.

USS Robert R. Ingram will carry the AN/SPY-6(V)1 radar and Aegis Baseline 10 combat system, giving the destroyer significantly improved detection, tracking, and engagement capability against ballistic missiles, drones, aircraft, and cruise missiles during high-intensity operations. With 96 Mk 41 VLS cells, integrated anti-submarine warfare systems, and proven combat relevance demonstrated during Red Sea and Middle East intercept operations, the Flight III configuration remains the backbone of the Navy’s multi-domain air and missile defense strategy despite approaching the physical growth limits of the Arleigh Burke design.

Related topic: USS Patrick Gallagher begins sea trials as last US Navy Arleigh Burke-class Flight IIA destroyer

As of early May 2026, Bath Iron Works has built or is building 39 Arleigh Burke-class destroyers in total, including 13 early Flight I ships, 5 Flight II ships, 15 Flight IIA ships, such as the USS Daniel Inouye, and 6 confirmed Flight III ships currently assigned to the yard. (Picture source: US Navy)

On May 6, 2026, Senator Susan Collins, Chair of the Senate Appropriations Committee, reported that the U.S. Navy awarded Bath Iron Works the contract for the future USS Robert R. Ingram (DDG-149), extending the production of the Flight III Arleigh Burke-class destroyer line while the future DDG(X) remains years away from procurement. DDG-149 will become the 98th ship of the class and the 21st Flight III-configured destroyer equipped with the AN/SPY-6(V)1 Air and Missile Defense Radar and Aegis Baseline 10 combat system. The ship is named after Robert Roland Ingram, who received the Medal of Honor for actions during combat operations in Quang Ngai Province, Vietnam, on March 28, 1966.

The contract also maintains the dual-yard procurement structure between Bath Iron Works in Maine and Ingalls Shipbuilding in Mississippi, currently the Navy’s only industrial arrangement for serial production of Arleigh Burke-class destroyers. The DDG-149 contract preserves workload continuity at Bath Iron Works during a period when the U.S. naval shipbuilding sector continues facing labor shortages, supplier delays, and cost growth affecting destroyer, submarine, and amphibious ship construction. To date, Bath Iron Works has constructed 39 Arleigh Burke-class destroyers since production began during the late 1980s, making it one of only two U.S. shipyards with experience building Aegis-equipped large surface combatants.

Current procurement cost for a Flight III destroyer stands near $2.2 billion per ship in FY2024 dollars, excluding portions of government-furnished equipment and missile inventories. Continued Flight III production also sustains manufacturing lines tied to SPY-6 radar arrays, Aegis combat system, Mk 41 Vertical Launch System modules, LM2500 gas turbines, AN/SQQ-89 anti-submarine warfare systems, and Standard Missile interceptor production. The Navy continues procuring DDG-51 destroyers because alternative large combatant programs, like the Trump-class, remain immature, while the first DDG(X) procurement is not expected before FY2032. 

Robert Roland Ingram was born in Clearwater, Florida, on January 20, 1945, and enlisted in the U.S. Navy in September 1963 before completing Hospital Corps and Fleet Marine Force training. He later deployed to Vietnam in July 1965 as a corpsman attached to the 1st Battalion, 7th Marines. On February 8, 1966, he received the Silver Star for combat medical actions conducted under enemy fire during operations involving Company C. Less than two months later, on March 28, 1966, his platoon encountered heavy North Vietnamese fire near a village in Quang Ngai Province.

During several hours of fighting, Ingram repeatedly crossed exposed terrain under automatic rifle fire to treat wounded Marines while redistributing ammunition and assisting evacuation efforts despite sustaining four gunshot wounds. President Bill Clinton awarded him the Medal of Honor on July 10, 1998, after decades of administrative delays linked to missing Vietnam-era paperwork. The USS Robert R. Ingram (DDG-149) belongs to the Flight III (2013) generation of the Arleigh Burke-class, developed after the cancellation of the CG(X) cruiser program as the Navy attempted to preserve large-area air defense capability using the existing Arleigh Burke hull.

Flight III procurement formally began during FY2013, and the USS Jack H. Lucas (DDG-125), the first operational Flight III destroyer, achieved initial operational capability in 2024. By January 2025, the U.S. Navy had ordered 24 Flight III destroyers, while longer-term planning examined expansion toward 42 vessels to offset the retirement of Ticonderoga-class cruisers. The Navy currently operates 75 Arleigh Burke-class destroyers across multiple variants, making the class the dominant surface combatant within the U.S. fleet. Continued procurement also reflects the U.S. Navy’s requirement to maintain destroyer inventory levels despite delays affecting next-generation combatant programs and rising operational demand in the Indo-Pacific, Middle East, and European theaters. 

The future USS Robert R. Ingram will retain the standard Flight III hull form, with an overall length of 155.3 m (509.5 ft), a beam of 20 m (66 ft), a draft of roughly 9.4 m (31 ft), and a full-load displacement approaching 9,700 tons. Propulsion is provided by four General Electric LM2500 gas turbines generating a combined 105,000 shaft horsepower, enabling speeds above 30 knots and an operational range approaching 4,400 nautical miles at 20 knots. Flight III destroyers also use three AG9160 ship-service generators producing 4 MW each, replacing the earlier 3 MW systems used aboard Flight IIA variants.

Crew complement is expected at roughly 380 personnel, while aviation facilities support two MH-60R Seahawk helicopters for anti-submarine warfare, targeting support, surveillance, logistics, and search-and-rescue operations. Structural survivability measures include Kevlar splinter protection, electromagnetic pulse hardening, NBC collective protection systems, decoy launchers, electronic warfare suites, and reinforced compartmentalization. The key capability of the Flight III variant is the integration of the AN/SPY-6(V)1 Air and Missile Defense Radar to replace the AN/SPY-1D radar used aboard earlier Burke variants.

The SPY-6 uses active electronically scanned array technology with digital beamforming and is assessed as roughly 30 times more sensitive than the SPY-1D while being capable of detecting targets half the size at twice the distance. Integration of the SPY-6 required a major redesign of electrical generation, cooling systems, internal hull arrangements, and combat system architecture because of increased power demand. Flight III destroyers also incorporate the Aegis Baseline 10, the AN/SPQ-9B surface-search radar, upgraded fire control radars, and AN/SQQ-89 anti-submarine warfare systems for simultaneous ballistic missile defense, anti-air warfare, and anti-submarine operations.

The redesign also increased displacement toward 9,700 tons full load and intensified concerns regarding remaining growth margins within the Arleigh Burke-class hull. The USS Robert R. Ingram (DDG-149) is expected to retain the standard Flight III weapons arrangement centered on 96 Mk 41 Vertical Launch System (VLS) cells divided between 32 forward cells and 64 aft cells. The destroyer can carry mixed missile inventories including SM-2, SM-3, SM-6, ESSM, Tomahawk land-attack missiles, and RUM-139 vertical launch ASROC weapons depending on operational tasking.

Flight III destroyers are specifically optimized for simultaneous anti-air warfare and ballistic missile defense operations under the Integrated Air and Missile Defense concept. Layered defensive systems include Phalanx CIWS, AN/SLQ-32 electronic warfare variants, Mk 36 decoy launchers, Nulka active decoys, and AN/SLQ-25 Nixie torpedo countermeasures. Anti-submarine warfare capability combines sonar arrays, towed sonar systems, embarked MH-60R helicopters, and Mark 32 torpedo tubes firing lightweight torpedoes. 

Operational demand for Arleigh Burke-class destroyers increased significantly between 2023 and 2025 due to sustained U.S. Navy operations in the Red Sea, Eastern Mediterranean, and Persian Gulf. Destroyers, including USS Mason, USS Carney, USS Gravely, USS Thomas Hudner, USS Arleigh Burke, USS Cole, and USS Bulkeley, conducted interceptions involving Houthi anti-ship missiles, drones, and Iranian ballistic missiles during regional escalation cycles. On April 13, 2024, USS Arleigh Burke and USS Carney employed SM-3 interceptors against Iranian ballistic missiles targeting Israel, marking the first combat use of SM-3 weapons.

These operations reinforced the U.S. Navy's emphasis on radar sensitivity, engagement depth, interceptor inventory, and persistent ballistic missile defense patrol availability. Therefore, the operational profile of the class consequently shifted from its original Cold War anti-air warfare role toward continuous multi-domain missile-defense operations. Despite continued procurement, senior Navy leadership acknowledged that Flight III approaches the practical physical limits of the DDG-51 design regarding future modernization. Vice Admiral Brendan McLane stated in 2025 that the Flight III configuration was effectively “maxed out” and unable to accommodate major additional systems without redesign.

Existing limitations involving electrical generation margins, cooling capacity, reserve displacement, internal volume, and topside weight increasingly complicate future integration of directed-energy weapons, larger radar arrays, and hypersonic strike systems. The future DDG(X) program is intended to address these structural constraints through larger hull dimensions, integrated power systems, expanded electrical capacity, and modular architecture. Continued procurement of destroyers such as DDG-149, therefore, reflects both the absence of a near-term replacement for the Arleigh Burke-class and the confidence in its combat-proven capabilities.

Written by Jérôme Brahy

Jérôme Brahy is a defense analyst and documentalist at Army Recognition. He specializes in naval modernization, aviation, drones, armored vehicles, and artillery, with a focus on strategic developments in the United States, China, Ukraine, Russia, Türkiye, and Belgium. His analyses go beyond the facts, providing context, identifying key actors, and explaining why defense news matters on a global scale.