General Dynamics Bath Iron Works, a business unit of General Dynamics (NYSE:GD), announced that the U.S. Navy has exercised an option to add an additional DDG 51 destroyer to the multi-year contract awarded in 2023.
“We are proud to be selected to build this ship for the U.S. Navy and to continue our legacy of contributing to the nation’s defense,” said Charles F. Krugh, president of Bath Iron Works. “I appreciate the efforts of our team to improve the construction process and build to the plan. We are clawing back schedule so we can deliver more Bath-built ships to our Navy. I would also like to acknowledge and thank our Congressional delegation who added this ship to the Fiscal Year 2025 Defense Appropriations Bill.”
Bath Iron Works currently has under construction the Flight IIA Arleigh Burke-class destroyers Harvey C. Barnum Jr. (DDG 124) and Patrick Gallagher (DDG 127) as well as the Flight III configuration destroyers Louis H. Wilson Jr. (DDG 126), William Charette (DDG 130), Quentin Walsh (DDG 132), John E. Kilmer (DDG 134) and Richard G. Lugar (DDG 136).
General Dynamics is a global aerospace and defense company that offers a broad portfolio of products and services in business aviation; ship construction and repair; land combat vehicles, weapons systems and munitions; and technology products and services. General Dynamics employs more than 110,000 people worldwide and generated $47.7 billion in revenue in 2024.
According to public records, Bath Iron Works was founded in 1884 and is located in Bath, Maine. It is a subsidiary of General Dynamics and is a full-service shipyard specializing in the design, construction, and support of complex surface combatants for the U.S. Navy.
Bath Iron Works’ main facility features a 229-meter dry dock, three slipways, three piers, an outfitting dock, four horizontal cranes, and indoor workshops for pre-outfitting and assembly. The shipyard has two main assembly halls. The larger hall covers an area of 15,000 square meters and houses the plate production line (the starting point of the steel assembly process) and multiple workstations; the smaller hall covers an area of 3,700 square meters and has 7 workstations.