DDG-51 - Tin Can Sailors

Hull Number: DDG-51

Launch Date: 09/16/1989

Commissioned Date: 07/04/1991

Call Sign: NBRK

Voice Call Sign: WAR HERO

Class: ARLEIGH BURKE

ARLEIGH BURKE Class

Namesake: ARLEIGH ALBERT BURKE

ARLEIGH ALBERT BURKE

Wikipedia (as of 2024)

Arleigh Albert Burke (October 19, 1901 – January 1, 1996) was an admiral of the United States Navy who distinguished himself during World War II and the Korean War, and who served as Chief of Naval Operations during the Eisenhower and Kennedy administrations.

USS Arleigh Burke (DDG-51), the lead ship of its class of Aegis-equipped guided missile destroyers, was commissioned in Burke’s honor in 1991. The honor of naming a US naval vessel after a living figure was only the fourth time it had been bestowed since 1861.

Burke was born in Boulder, Colorado, on October 19, 1901, to Oscar Burke and Clara Mokler. His grandfather, August Björkgren, was a Swedish immigrant to the US and changed his surname to ‘Burke’, a common Irish surname, to sound more ‘American’.^[1] Due to the 1918 influenza outbreak, schools were closed in Boulder and he never graduated from high school. Burke won an alternate appointment to the United States Naval Academy given by his local congressman. During his time at the academy, Burke was a member of 23rd Company. He graduated from the academy in June 1923, and was commissioned as an ensign in the United States Navy. He married Roberta Gorsuch (1899–1997) of Washington, D.C.

Over the next 18 years, Burke served aboard battleships and destroyers, and earned a Master of Science degree in chemical engineering at the University of Michigan in 1931.^[2] When World War II came, he found himself, to his great disappointment, in a shore billet at the Naval Gun Factory in Washington, D.C. After persistent efforts on his part, in 1943 he received orders to join the fighting in the South Pacific.^[3]

Burke spent the remainder of the war in the South Pacific. He successively commanded Destroyer Division 43, Destroyer Division 44, Destroyer Squadron 12, and Destroyer Squadron 23.^[4] DesRon 23, known as the “Little Beavers”, covered the initial landings in Bougainville in November 1943, and fought in 22 separate engagements during the next four months. During this time, the Little Beavers were credited with destroying one Japanese cruiser, nine destroyers, one submarine, several smaller ships, and approximately 30 aircraft.^[3] Burke’s standing orders to his task force were, “Destroyers to attack on enemy contact WITHOUT ORDERS from the task force commander.”^[5] After reviewing the Navy’s early unsuccessful engagements with the Japanese, he concluded that uncertainty and hesitation had cost them dearly. The lesson was driven home to him at the Battle of Blackett Strait, when his radar operator made first contact with a ship near the shore but Burke hesitated to fire. A battle soon unfolded which ended in a US victory, which only Burke was unhappy with. Reflecting on the events Burke asked a nearby ensign what the difference was between a good officer and a poor one. After listening to the ensign’s response, Burke offered his own: “The difference between a good officer and a poor one,” said Burke, “is about ten seconds.”^[6]

Burke usually pushed his destroyers to just under boiler-bursting speed, but while en route to a rendezvous prior to the Battle of Cape St. George the USS Spence became a boiler casualty (a boiler tube was blocked by a brush used for cleaning), limiting Burke’s squadron to 31 knots, rather than the 34+ of which they were otherwise capable. His nickname was “31 Knot Burke,” originally a taunt, later a popular symbol of his hard-charging nature.^[3] An alternative explanation is provided by Jean Edward Smith in his biography of Eisenhower: “During World War Two, Burke mistakenly led his destroyer squadron into a Japanese minefield. Admiral Halsey radioed to ask what he was doing in a Japanese minefield. ‘Thirty-one knots,’ replied Burke”.^[7]

In March 1944, Burke was promoted to Chief of Staff to the Commander of Task Force 58, the Fifth Fleet’s Fast Carrier Task Force, which was commanded by Admiral Marc Mitscher. The transfer stemmed from a directive from the Chief of Naval Operations, Admiral Ernest King, that required a surface commander such as Admiral Raymond A. Spruance to have an aviator as Chief of Staff, and an air commander, such as Mitscher, to have a surface officer as Chief of Staff.^[8] Neither Mitscher nor Burke were happy with the arrangement, but as time passed Burke realized he had been given one of the most important assignments in the Navy, and his hard work and diligence eventually caused Mitscher to warm to him. Burke was promoted to the temporary rank of Commodore, and participated in all the force’s naval engagements until June 1945, near the end of the war. He was aboard both USS Bunker Hill and USS Enterprise when they were hit by Japanese kamikaze aircraft during the Okinawa campaign.^[3]

After the end of the war, Burke reverted to his permanent rank of captain and continued his naval career by serving in a number of capacities, including once more as Admiral Mitscher’s chief of staff, until the latter’s death in 1947. Burke then took command of the cruiser USS Huntington for a cruise down the east coast of Africa. He was promoted to rear admiral in 1949 and served as Navy Secretary on the Defense Research and Development Board.^[3]

At the outbreak of the Korean War, Admiral Forrest Sherman, then Chief of Naval Operations, ordered Burke to duty as Deputy Chief of Staff to Commander Naval Forces Far East. From there, he assumed command of Cruiser Division Five, and, in July 1951, was made a member of the United Nations Truce Delegation which negotiated with the Communists for military armistice in Korea. After six months in the truce tents, he returned to the Office of Chief of Naval Operations where he served as Director of Strategic Plans Division until 1954.^[3]

In April 1954, he took command of Cruiser Division Six, then moved in January 1955 to command Destroyer Force Atlantic Fleet (DesLant). In August 1955, Burke succeeded Admiral Robert B. Carney as Chief of Naval Operations. At the time of his appointment as Chief of Naval Operations, Burke was still a rear admiral (two stars) and was promoted over the heads of many Flag Officers who were senior to him. Burke had never served as a vice admiral (three stars), so he was promoted two grades at the time of his appointment.^[3]

Burke took the post of Chief of Naval Operations with significant reservations. He served at a critical time in world history, during the depths of the Cold War. He was relatively young compared to other Flag Officers at the time. He was a hard worker, and seemingly tireless, working fifteen-hour work days six days a week as a norm.

He was also an excellent leader and manager, and his ability to create an effective organization were keys to his success. He supported the notoriously demanding Admiral Hyman Rickover in the development of a nuclear-powered submarine force, and instituted the development of submarine-launched ballistic missiles, which led to the Polaris missile program, headed by Burke’s selectee Rear Admiral W. F. “Red” Raborn.^[9] Burke convened the Project Nobska anti-submarine warfare conference in 1956 at the suggestion of Columbus Iselin II, director of the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution, where discussion ranged from oceanography to nuclear weapons. At the conference, a statement by Edward Teller that a physically small one-megaton warhead suitable for Polaris could be developed led to Burke’s adoption of Polaris over Jupiter.^[10] At a time when others in the Navy were very skeptical of the idea of a missile launched from a submarine, Burke succeeded in developing the single most effective deterrent to a nuclear attack on the United States. By 1961 routine Polaris deterrent patrols were in progress and a rapid construction program of Polaris submarines was underway.

Burke as Chief of Naval Operations was intimately involved in the Eisenhower administration discussions on limiting the size of the submarine force. Asked “how much is enough?”, as to the number of US ballistic missile submarines needed for deterrence, Burke argued that a force of around 40 Polaris submarines (each with 16 missiles) was a reasonable answer.^[11] Burke further argued that land-based missiles and bombers were vulnerable to attack, which made the U.S.-Soviet nuclear balance dangerously unstable. By contrast, nuclear submarines were virtually undetectable and invulnerable.^[11] He was very critical of “hair trigger” or “launch on warning” nuclear strategies, and he warned that such strategies were “dangerous for any nation.”^[12]

Burke served an unprecedented three terms as Chief of Naval Operations during a period of growth and progress in the Navy. Upon completing his third term, he was transferred to the Retired List on August 1, 1961.^[3]

Burke, himself of Swedish descent, was the senior representative of the United States of America at the funeral of King Gustaf VI Adolf of Sweden in 1973.

Arleigh Burke died on January 1, 1996, at the National Naval Medical Center in Bethesda, Maryland. He was 94 years old. He is buried at the United States Naval Academy Cemetery, in Annapolis, Maryland.

USS Arleigh Burke (DDG-51), the lead ship of her class of Aegis-equipped guided missile destroyers, was commissioned in his honor in 1991. In 1985, a few months after the ship was ordered, an early keel-laying ceremony was held at Bath Iron Works. Burke marked his initials on material that was later incorporated at the physical keel-laying on December 6, 1988. Burke was one of the very few individuals to be honored by a ship named after them during their lifetime.

The Assisted Living section of the Vinson Hall Retirement Community in McLean, Virginia, is named the Arleigh Burke Pavilion in his honor.

Ship History

USS ARLEIGH BURKE DDG-51 Ship History

Wikipedia (as of 2024)

The ship was launched on 16 September 1989 by Mrs. Roberta (Gorsuch) Burke. Admiral Burke was present in person at her commissioning ceremony on 4 July, which was held on the waterfront in downtown Norfolk, Virginia.

After being commissioned and throughout 1992, Arleigh Burke conducted extensive testing at sea. As is often the case with new ship classes, U.S. Navy officers and shipyard engineers encountered a number of problems with some shipboard systems that required the attention of the warship’s design and production agencies. An additional phase of testing was added to verify the effectiveness of the modifications made to these systems—modifications incorporated into later destroyers of the Arleigh Burke class.

Following her initial operational testing, Arleigh Burke was deployed to the Mediterranean Sea and the Adriatic Sea in 1993, serving as the “Green Crown” during Operation Provide Promise. During her second deployment in 1995, Arleigh Burke steamed in the Mediterranean Sea as the “Red Crown” in support of the No-Fly Zone over Bosnia and Herzegovina. During her third cruise, in 1998, she steamed in the Mediterranean Sea, Adriatic Sea, Red Sea, and Black Sea, as a participant in numerous American and Allied exercises. During her fourth cruise in 2000–2001, Arleigh Burke saw service in the Mediterranean and Red Seas and in the Persian Gulf, enforcing United Nations sanctions against Iraq and conducting exercises with allied naval partners.

On her fifth deployment in 2003, Arleigh Burke and the other units of the Theodore Roosevelt-led carrier battle group participated in Operation Enduring Freedom and Operation Iraqi Freedom. During this wartime cruise, Arleigh Burke fired Tomahawk missile strikes against targets in Iraq, escorted merchant ships and naval auxiliaries through geographic choke points, and carried out “leadership interdiction” operations in the northern Arabian Sea. She also undertook counter-piracy missions in the Gulf of Aden. This cruise, which lasted from January through June 2003, saw Arleigh Burke at sea over 92 percent of the time.

In March 2003, she was assigned to Destroyer Squadron 2.

Arleigh Burke has earned one Navy Unit Commendation, three Meritorious Unit Commendations, three Battle Efficiency E Awards, the National Defense Service Medal, the Armed Forces Expeditionary Medal, the Kuwait Liberation Medal, and five Sea Service Deployment Ribbons.

As a member of Destroyer Squadron 22, Arleigh Burke operated with the George H.W. Bush Carrier Strike Group under the direction of the Commander, Carrier Group 2.

In May 2007, Arleigh Burke ran what the Navy called a “soft aground” off Cape Henry Light at the entrance to the Chesapeake Bay.^[5] Her captain, Commander Esther J. McClure, was relieved of her command shortly thereafter as a result of a “loss of confidence in her ability to command”.^[6]^[7]

In October 2007, Arleigh Burke was involved in anti-pirate operations in Somalia.

In 2009, Arleigh Burke was deployed to the eastern coast of Africa in support of AFRICOM’s Africa Partnership Station. The ship represented the United States during a port visit to the island nation of Seychelles where they played a role in securing a status of forces agreement between the two countries.

In August 2010, Arleigh Burke entered the BAE Systems Ship Repair shipyard in Norfolk, Virginia for DDG Modernization, a program to upgrade the ship’s systems and to extend the service life to 40 years.^[8]

On 23 September 2014, Arleigh Burke took part in the 2014 military intervention against ISIS, firing Tomahawk missiles on targets in Syria while the ship was in the Red Sea.^[9]

In 2018, the ship made two three-month overseas deployments, returning to Norfolk, Virginia, between cruises.

In 2019, she entered General Dynamics NASSCO’s shipyard in Norfolk, Virginia, for continued work towards modernization for ballistic missile defense.^[10]

In March 2021, during the COVID-19 pandemic, Arleigh Burke transited the Atlantic Ocean and conducted a home port shift to Rota, Spain, joining the Forward Deployed Naval Forces in Europe as part of Destroyer Squadron 60. Prior to the port shift, she received extensive upgrades, including Aegis Baseline 9 for BMD capability, as well as replacing her aft Phalanx CIWS with a SeaRAM CIWS.^[11] The ship crossed the Arctic Circle in May 2021.^[10]

The crew began their first forward-deployed patrol in August 2021, returning in December 2021. During 2021, Arleigh Burke sailed more than 44,000 miles,^[12] circumnavigated Europe, and executed operations in the Baltic Sea, Black Sea, Mediterranean Sea, Barents Sea, Atlantic Ocean, and Arctic Ocean. Port calls included Tallinn, Estonia; Helsinki, Finland; Gdynia, Poland; Varna, Bulgaria; Constanta, Romania; and Golcuk, Turkey.^[10]

In March 2022, USS Arleigh Burke was selected as the 2021 Battle E Winner for Destroyer Squadron 60. The Battle “E” recognizes the top ship in each squadron and is awarded for demonstrating sustained superior performance, operational effectiveness, and continuous readiness.^[13]

In April 2022, Arleigh Burke completed the largest maintenance availability ever conducted in Rota, Spain, and then commenced her second forward-deployed patrol in May 2022.^[13]

On 9 July 2022, Arleigh Burke arrived in Riga for a scheduled port visit.^[14]

TCS Ship History

A Tin Can Sailors Destroyer History

USS ARLEIGH BURKE DDG-51

The Tin Can Sailor, October 1991

July 31, 1988 marked a milestone in American naval history. In a bustling Maine seacoast town, justly famous for the quality of the vessels she spawns, a legendary naval officer assisted in laying the keel of the nation’s newest destroyer. Admiral Arleigh A. Burke, USN (Ret) seemed at home in a tasteful dark suit and hard hat, comfortable in the controlled clutter of Bath Iron Works. He was officiating at yet another historic moment in a life filled with remarkable service. DDG-51 would be the first warship to be commissioned with the name of a living American. The U.S. Navy could not have chosen a more appropriate recipient for that distinct honor than the admiral.

Arleigh Burke was born in Boulder, CO on October 19, 1901, the oldest child of Oscar and Clara Burke. In the early years of the Twentieth Century, Boulder was very much a farming community and the traditional values of duty, honor, responsibility, and patriotism were ingrained in the Burke children early in life. Arleigh learned the importance of hard work and the value of a job well done.

Much has been written about Arleigh’s decision to enter naval service. One biographer attributes it to a “Viking” heritage, another to the influence of a teacher. Whatever the true reason, Midshipman Burke entered the United States Naval Academy in June 1919. The Academy years provided Arleigh with a strong general education for his future career; perhaps more importantly, it presented him with the chance to meet Roberta Gorsuch. The Burkes were married in June 1923, the month of Arleigh’s graduation.

The Navy Mr. Burke entered as an ensign was in many ways like the Navy of today. World War I had been over for more than four years, the international temperament sought arms reduction and Washington planned cutbacks. The nation’s enemies had been vanquished; the need for a large, expensive Navy was questioned. The environment, especially for a young man embarking on a naval career, seemed hostile. Ensign Burke was not, however, the ordinary man.

It has been suggested that naval officers are not born, they are made, then rebuilt on a daily basis. Ensign Burke’s first assignment was aboard the six year old USS ARIZONA (BB-39). Five years of service on the battleship acclimated the young officer to the great variety of challenges found on a large warship; subsequent service on USS PROCYON (AF-11), flagship of the Commander, Fleet Base Force, U.S. Battlefleet enhanced his reputation for courage and won him his first decoration for rescuing a group of fishermen. A return to the University of Michigan culminated in a master’s degree in engineering. Tours of duty in USS CHESTER (CA-27) and USS MUGFORD (DD-389) were included with assignment in the Bureau of Ordinance. By the beginning of World War II in Europe, Burke, by then a lieutenant commander, had commanded MUGFORD and served as ordinance inspector at the Washington Navy Yard.

Arleigh Burke’s exploits in World War II have become legendary. By 1943, the Japanese were reeling back from Guadalcanal and the Solomons had become a cauldron of torpedo wakes and muzzle blasts off Vila, Commander Burke’s flagship, USS WALLER (DD-466) of DESDIV 43, was credited with sinking the Japanese SHIRATSUYU-class destroyer MURASAME in a wild night action while in the van of a cruiser-destroyer force. A new command, DESDIV 44, in May had him shepherding convoys through the Solomons chain. By August, he was a captain commanding a full squadron, DESRON 12.

The “Little Beavers” of DESRON 23, Captain Burke’s next command, rank among the finest naval fighting units in history. Burke’s standards were high, but his orders were brief and to the point; their job was to sink Japanese ships, anything which did not lead to that end was secondary. The “Beavers” were VERY good at their job. During Burke’s sixteen weeks of command, DESRON 23 fought twenty-two engagements, was credited with sinking one cruiser, nine destroyers, one submarine, numerous small craft, and downing more than thirty enemy aircraft. From Empress Augusta Bay to the classic battle of Cape St. George, the “Little Beavers” burned their way into the Japanese subconscious. The captain became “31-knot Burke” in the Navy’s folklore.

By the time the “Little Beavers” joined Admiral Marc Mitscher’s TF-58 in 1944, Arleigh Burke had seen his last tour in a destroyer. Commodore Burke’s early association with the acerbic Mitscher was not always easy, but Arleigh’s dedication, professionalism, and courage marked him as a valuable asset to any commander. As the admiral’s chief of staff, Commodore Burke served with the fast carrier force from Hollandia through Okinawa. Arleigh’s Silver Star was awarded when the future admiral personally rescued several USS BUNKER HILL seamen from fire-swept compartments hit by a Kamikaze off Okinawa.

Within the next fifteen years, Arleigh Burke rose to the highest rank in his profession. From staff assignments with the Atlantic Fleet and the Chief of Naval Operations, Burke, a rear admiral by 1950, became commander of Cruiser Division Five. He also served as a United Nations representative at the Korean truce talks.

President Dwight D. Eisenhower elevated the admiral to Chief of Naval Operations in 1955, over eighty-seven active duty officers on the seniority list. For the next six years, Admiral Burke directed the birth of the new American navy. Nuclear-powered carriers, submarine-launched Polaris missiles, fleet air defense based on jet aircraft and missiles, and nuclear-powered cruisers and destroyers all became standard under “3-knot Burke.”

Admiral Arleigh Albert Burke retired in August, 1961 and currently lives with “Bobbie,” his wife of sixty-eight years, in Virginia. The admiral, an active member of Tin Can Sailors, serves as honorary chairman of the board of directors and officiated at the dedication of the Admiral Arleigh Burke Destroyermen’s Museum on USS JOSEPH P. KENNEDY, JR. (DD-850) at Battleship Cove, Fall River, Massachusetts in 1986. The ship that was to bear the Burke name began as a Navy design study in 1980. The DDGX project was to produce a destroyer capable of effectively answering the bewildering number of threats in the hostile sea environment of the Twenty-first century. In short, the Navy wanted a fast, agile, “sea boat” with the punch of a World War II battleship, an air defense ‘capability close to that of the newest cruisers, state-of-the- art anti-submarine weaponry and sensors, equipped with Kevlar composite armor and able to survive in chemical, biological and even nuclear “environments.” Not included in the list of requirements was “able to leap tall buildings in a single bound,” but it was implied.

Naval architects know that any ship represents a series of compromises. The power plant needed to make her fast will either consume prodigious quantities of fuel or, if nuclear, add many tons to the displacement for needed shielding. Great length with a narrow beam sacrifices maneuverability for speed. Extensive radar outfits add top weight. An impressive inventory of weapons is possible, provided the crew is willing to sleep in tents on deck! That any capable modern naval vessel is even launched is a tribute to the brilliance of the men and women who design and build them.

The contract to build the first of the “super destroyers” was awarded to Bath Iron Works on April 2, 1984. For the ninth time in BIW’s history, the firm was chosen to build the prototype of a surface combatant. Great things were expected, and BIW certainly disappointed no one.

From her impressive launching in 1989 to her emotional commissioning in Norfolk last Independence Day, DDG-51 has been seen as a special vessel by those who know her. Her clean lines, clipper bow and raked mast suggest the sailing frigates of an earlier Navy, but there, the similarity ends.

In a shorter but wider hull than the thirty-one SPRUANCE-class destroyers in service since 1983, the ARLEIGH BURKE packs four 25,000 shaft horse-power gas turbines, providing a sustained speed undoubtedly well above her “published” 31 knots. Her twin rudders and controllable, reversible pitch screws mean exceptional maneuverability, while her wider beam forms a highly stable platform. With all-steel construction and a Kevlar armored “box” around her vital command and control areas, DDG-51 is a very different “tin can.”

ARLEIGH BURKE’s “sensor suite” seems designed around the old adage, “you can’t shoot what you can’t see.” Her Aegis Weapon system can track and engage more than 120 targets simultaneously. Four “fixed array” panels arranged on the forward superstructure feed a complex computer system with data. On-board systems supply a compact, Kevlar-armored CIC with missile tracks, anchorage diagrams, formation plans, boat lanes for amphibious landings, and a lightning-fast analysis of all potential threats within more than 150, square miles around DDG-51. Submarines are no safer with BURKE in the area, either.

The thirty ton rubber sonar dome at BURKE’ s bow is one element of the finest anti-submarine sensor system afloat. Coupled with the destroyer’s phenomenal computer system and a SQR-19 “towed array” which can be streamed to depths of 1200 feet, DDG-51’s ability to “sniff out” underwater threats is light years beyond the search capacity of an entire squadron of GEARINGS. She can also access data from sensors on other escorts in her screen and LAMPS helicopters operated by the group. While BURKE herself has no helo hanger, later versions of the vessel, called “Third Flight” modifications, will operate two LAMPS III choppers each. The destroyer’s electronic gadgetry seems to sprout from every available surface on the vessel.

To the casual observer familiar with the firepower of yesteryear, DDG-51 seems under-armed. A single 5″ gun can be identified forward of the superstructure; little else is obvious. Unfriendly observers should be warned, however, that USS ARLEIGH BURKE packs a world-class punch. Stored in vertical cells forward and aft of the superstructure are NINETY Standard SM-2 and Tomahawk missiles, allowing the ship’s commander to select the appropriate weapon for the job. The Tomahawk cruise missile, made famous by Operation Desert Storm, can extend BURKE’s “reach” up to 1300 nautical miles. ASROC missiles, which may also be stored in the vertical launch system, may also be embarked at this writing. Eight Harpoon ship-killer missiles angle from the quarterdeck, forward of DDG-51’s two sets of Mark 32 torpedo tubes.

Phalanx “Gatling gun” close-in weapons systems sport their white “hats” below the bridge and aft of the Mark 99 radar “illuminators.” Chaff projectors stand ready to decoy sea-skimming missiles able to penetrate BURKE’s other defenses. Even the ship’s 5″ gun mount is a state-of-the-art, remotely-controlled, radar-directed super gun. The gun crew of six is below deck and the gun captain can “call up” any combination of four different projectiles, blasting them toward targets fourteen miles away at a rate of twenty rounds per minute. USS ARLEIGH BURKE is truly a pocket battleship.

The crew of DDG-51 are state-of-the-art as well; fortunately, the “art” is as old as the destroyer Navy. Everyone privileged to attend BURKE’s commissioning in Norfolk on July 4, 1991 was impressed by the emotion and professionalism of the officers and crew of the new destroyer. Among the ship’s company are a high percentage of technical ratings, many unfamiliar to “old” Navy men.

The swagger, the pride, and the courage of the “old time destroyer Navy” still can’t be hidden beneath the high tech training and finer-tailored uniforms. In another time and another place, the officers and crew of USS ARLEIGH BURKE would feel right at home on four-pipers chasing the Kaiser’s U-Boats, or combing torpedo wakes in the Solomons, or searching freighters for Russian missiles off Cuba. They have taken their place in an unbroken line of destroyermen; one of our often undervalued national treasures. Admiral Arleigh Burke has written, “This ship is built to fight. You had better know how.” No monument or decoration could better represent this premier destroyer sailor than DDG-1, her officers and crew.

To the men of ARLEIGH BURKE, Tin Can Sailors wish peace, a warm, gentle wind, and a following sea.

This ship dedication would not have been possible without the kind support of Commander John G. Morgan, Jr., commanding officer of USS ARLEIGH BURKE, along with his superb officers and crew. To the men and women of Bath Iron Works who provided extensive data and many of the beautiful photos of this epitome of the ship-builders skill, we also express our thanks for a job well done.