History:
June 22, 2001
GUIDED MISSILE DESTROYER MASON TO BE CHRISTENED
The Department of the Navy
will christen Arleigh Burke class guided-missile destroyer Mason
(DDG 87) Saturday, June 23, 2001, during a 2 p.m. EDT ceremony
at Bath Iron Works in Bath, Maine.
The Mason is named in honor of two previous ships of that
name. The first Mason (DD-191) (1920-1941) was named for John
Young Mason, born April 18, 1799, in Greene County, Va. Both a
political leader and diplomat, he was secretary of the Navy for
Presidents John Tyler, 1844 to 1845, and James K. Polk, 1846 to
1849. As minister to France, he joined James Buchanan and Pierre
Soulé, ministers to Great Britain and Spain respectively,
on Oct. 18, 1854, in issuing the famous Ostend Manifesto. This
document justified seizing Cuba if Spain would not sell the
colony to the United States. Mason died in Paris, France, Oct.
3, 1859.
The second Mason (DE 529) (1944-1945) was named for Ensign
Newton Henry Mason, born Dec. 24, 1918, in New York City. He
enlisted as a seaman in the Naval Reserve, Nov. 7, 1940 and on
Feb. 10, 1941 was appointed an aviation cadet. Assigned to
Fighting Squadron 3, he died following aerial combat against
Japanese forces during the Battle of the Coral Sea, May 8 and 9,
1942. Mason was posthumously awarded the Distinguished Flying
Cross for his skill and courage in battle.
Rear Adm. David L. Brewer III, vice chief of Naval
Education and Training, will deliver the ceremony's principal
address. Sen. Olympia J. Snowe of Maine will serve as ship
sponsor. In the time-honored Navy tradition, Snowe will break a
bottle of champagne across the bow to formally name the ship.
Mason is the 37th ship of 57 Arleigh Burke class
destroyers currently authorized by Congress. These
highly-capable multi-mission ships can conduct a variety of
operations, from peacetime presence and crisis management to sea
control and power projection, in support of the National
Military Strategy. The mission of Mason is to conduct sustained
combat operations at sea, providing primary protection for the
Navy's aircraft carriers and battle groups, as well as essential
escort to Navy and Marine Corps amphibious forces and auxiliary
ships, and independent operations as necessary. The ship is
capable of fighting air, surface, and subsurface battles
simultaneously. The ship contains myriad offensive and defensive
weapons designed to support maritime defense needs well into the
21st century.
Cmdr. David Gale of Lebanon, N.Y., will take command of
Mason upon commissioning in the spring of 2003. With a crew of
approximately 365 officers and enlisted personnel, Mason will be
homeported in Norfolk, Va. Mason, the 21st Arleigh Burke class
ship built by Bath Iron Works, is 509.5 feet in length, has an
overall beam of 59 feet, and a navigational draft of 30 feet.
Four gas-turbine engines power the 9,200 ton ship to speeds in
excess of 30 knots. |
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