Ingalls begins work on DDG 131
A worker at the Ingalls Shipbuilding Steel Fabrication Shop presses a button to start fabrication of the future USS George M Neal. (Photo: HII)
The Ingalls Shipbuilding division of Huntington Ingalls Industries (HII) on 6 December began construction of its newest Flight III Arleigh Burke-class destroyer for the USN, the future USS George M Neal (DDG 131).
According to HII, Ingalls has delivered 33 Arleigh Burke-class destroyers to the USN.
Other destroyers under construction include the Flight IIA vessel Lenah Sutcliffe Higbee (DDG 123) and three Flight III ships: Jack H Lucas (DDG 125), Ted Stevens (DDG 128) and Jeremiah Denton (DDG 129).
In addition, Ingalls is contracted to build four more Flight III destroyers for the USN: the future Sam Nunn (DDG 133), Thad Cochran (DDG 135), John F Lehman (DDG 137) and the as-yet unnamed DDG-139.
Related Programmes in Defence Insight
Arleigh Burke Flight III (DDG 125 - DDG 139) [USN]
Related Equipment in Defence Insight
More from Naval Warfare
-
UK Royal Navy explores modular counter-drone capabilities for future hybrid fleet
The UK MoD is scoping out systems to counter the growing threat of uncrewed aerial systems, with a focus on low-cost modularity and speed to field.
-
US Pentagon claims to have severely damaged Iranian capabilities, promises to increase attacks
US military authorities claim to have sunk 20 Iranian vessels and destroyed Tehran’s Air Force, with the Pentagon making plans to send additional assets to the region.
-
Greece’s newly commissioned FDI frigate deployed to Cyprus
The recent naval modernisation efforts by the Hellenic Navy have been bolstered by the acquisition of advanced Naval Group frigates, the first of which was delivered in December 2025 and is now playing a crucial role in the latest Middle East conflict.
-
US Navy SPY-6 approaches FRP with Raytheon already having “a hot production line”
Jen Gauthier, Raytheon’s VP of Naval Systems and Sustainment, told Shephard that the company is awaiting the US Navy’s green light to move “fully into full-rate production”.
-
Ireland releases maritime strategy as it looks to new naval bases and stronger partnerships
Ireland has a maritime area ten times the size of its land mass but has a limited naval capacity and faces an ongoing threat to critical underwater infrastructure. A new strategy is looking to address the challenge.
-
How the Golden Fleet will change the US Navy acquisition process
The procurement of the future USN Golden Fleet is planned to be less bureaucratic than previous strategies, involving AI-enabled designs and scheduling tools to increase productivity and avoid delays.