PASCAGOULA, Miss., July 23, 2003 (PRIMEZONE) -- The U.S. Navy will commission USS Mustin (DDG 89), its 39th Aegis guided missile destroyer, and the 18th built by Northrop Grumman Corporation's (NYSE:NOC) Ship Systems sector, Saturday, July 26, at 8 p.m. PDT.
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Adm. Vern Clark, chief of Naval Operations, will deliver the principal address at Naval Air Station North Island, Pier K, in Coronado, Calif.
Mustin's sponsors, Lucy Holcomb Mustin, wife of ship's co-namesake retired Navy Vice Adm. Henry C. Mustin, II; Jean Phillips Mustin, wife of ship's co-namesake retired Navy Lt. Comdr. Thomas M. Mustin; and Mrs. Douglas Mustin St. Denis, sister of Henry C. Mustin, II and Thomas M. Mustin, will continue the Navy tradition and give the order to "man our ship and bring her to life!"
Anne Howard Thomas, who served as matron of honor for the first ship named Mustin in 1938, will also serve these sponsors as matron of honor.
Other ceremony participants include U.S. Rep. Susan Davis from California, 53rd congressional district; Vice Adm. Timothy W. LaFleur commander, Naval Surface Force, U.S. Pacific Fleet; Navy Rear Adm. Charles S. Hamilton, II, program executive officer for ships; and Dr. Philip A. Dur, president, Northrop Grumman Ship Systems and corporate vice president, Northrop Grumman Corporation.
Mustin will honor the Mustin family who has a rich and honorable tradition of Naval service. The Mustin family's service lasted from 1896 to 1989 and is marked by officers who were extraordinary innovators.
Navy Capt. Henry C. Mustin (1874-1923), earned a distinguished-service commendation in the capture of Vigan, Philippines in 1899; flew the first aircraft ever catapulted from a ship; in 1914, flew the first operational missions of Naval aircraft during the Veracruz operation; and was the first commander of aircraft squadrons, battle fleet.
Henry C. Mustin's son, Navy Vice Adm. Lloyd Mustin (1911-1999), contributed to the development of the Navy's first lead-computing anti-aircraft gun sight, which proved of major importance in the air-sea actions of World War II, and served on the cruiser USS Atlanta (CL 51) during the battle of Guadalcanal. His post war service included the role of operations director, Joint Chiefs of Staff.
Lloyd Mustin's sons, Henry C. Mustin, II and Thomas M. Mustin, continue the family's service legacy.
Henry C. Mustin, II is a decorated Vietnam veteran who was Naval inspector general, 2nd Fleet commander and deputy chief of Naval Operations for plans and policy in the 1980s.
Thomas Mustin earned a Bronze Star during the Vietnam conflict for river patrol combat action.
The 509.5-foot, 9,300-ton Mustin has an overall beam of 66.5 feet and a navigational draft of 31.9 feet. Four gas turbine propulsion plants will power the ship to speeds above 31 knots. A crew of approximately 383 officers and others will operate the ship.
Mustin will be home ported in San Diego, as part of the U.S. Pacific Fleet. Ten more Aegis destroyers are under contract.
Navy Cmdr. Ann Phillips, a native of Annapolis, Md., is the new ship's commissioning commanding officer.
Northrop Grumman's Ship Systems sector includes primary operations in Pascagoula and Gulfport, Miss., and in New Orleans and Tallulah, La., as well as in a network of fleet support offices in the U.S. and Japan. Ship Systems, which employs more than 17,000 shipbuilding professionals, is one of the nation's leading full-service systems companies for the design, engineering, construction and life cycle support of major surface ships for the U.S. Navy, U.S. Coast Guard and international navies, and for commercial vessels of all types.
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