From Naval Surface Force, U.S. Pacific Fleet Public Affairs
In this file photo, the guided-missile destroyer Pre-Commissioning Unit (PCU) John Finn (DDG 113) is launched in March 2015 in Pascagoula, Miss. (U.S. Navy photo) >>
SAN DIEGO - The Navy announced today the future guided-missile destroyers USS John Finn (DDG 113) and USS Rafael Peralta (DDG 115) are scheduled to be homeported at Naval Base San Diego following their respective commissionings.
Rafael Peralta is expected to arrive in San Diego in fall of 2016 and John Finn will follow in early 2017.
Rafael Peralta is being built by Bath Iron Works in Bath, Maine and John Finn is being built by Huntington Ingalls Industries (HII) in Pascagoula, Mississippi. Both ships are Arleigh Burke-class destroyers.
<< In this file photo, U.S. Marines, Sailors, and guests honor the American and Navy flag during the USS Rafael Peralta christening ceremony at General Dynamics Bath Iron Works, Bath, Maine, in October. (U.S. Marine Corps/Sgt. Gabriela Garcia)
The U.S. Navy continually monitors force readiness and ability to provide the most robust, capable maritime force possible. Stationing destroyers in a West Coast port supports the rebalance to the Indo-Asia-Pacific region, placing our most advanced capabilities and greater capacity in that vital theater. By 2020, approximately 60 percent of Navy ships and aircraft will be based in the region.
Guided-missile destroyers are multi-mission surface combatants capable of conducting Anti-Air Warfare (AAW), Anti-Submarine Warfare (ASW), and Anti-Surface Warfare (ASUW). The destroyer's armament has greatly expanded the role of the ship in strike warfare utilizing the MK-41 Vertical Launch System (VLS).