SAN DIEGO--(BUSINESS WIRE)--BAE Systems has received a $47.8 million contract from the U.S. Navy to modernize the guided-missile destroyer USS Howard (DDG 83). The Howard will undergo 15 months of extensive work at the company’s shipyard in San Diego, the ship’s homeport. The depot maintenance period (DMP) availability contract includes options that, if exercised, would bring the cumulative value to $66.5 million.
The USS Howard was commissioned in October 2001. The ship is the first West Coast-based destroyer to undergo the Navy’s extensive DMP repair and upgrade program. BAE Systems will perform hull, mechanical, and electrical repairs, and upgrade the combat systems suite aboard the 509-foot-long Howard. The work is expected to begin in February and be completed in May 2019. The company’s Jacksonville, Florida, shipyard is completing a DMP availability aboard the USS Roosevelt (DDG 80), and its Norfolk, Virginia, shipyard recently received a DMP contract to work on the USS Oscar Austin (DDG 79).
“We look forward to conducting the first-ever West Coast destroyer DMP availability on the Howard,” said Bob Koerber, vice president and general manager of BAE Systems San Diego Ship Repair. “The extensive work to be done on board aligns perfectly with the experience and capabilities of our employees and subcontractors.”
The company’s San Diego shipyard also was recently awarded a $11.5 million contract to dry-dock and modernize the San Diego-based mine countermeasures ship USS Champion (MCM 4). Work aboard the 224-foot-long ship will begin in January and will be completed August.
BAE Systems is a leading provider of ship repair, maintenance, modernization, conversion, and overhaul services for the Navy, other government agencies, and select commercial customers. The company operates five full-service shipyards in Alabama, California, Florida, Hawaii, and Virginia, and offers a highly skilled, experienced workforce, eight dry docks, and significant pier space and ship support services.
