On Friday, August 30, General Dynamics Bath Iron Works held a keel plate signing ceremony for the future USS Thomas G. Kelley (DDG 140). The ceremony was attended by the ship’s namesake, retired Navy Capt. Thomas Kelley. Kelley is a Medal of Honor recipient who commanded a river assault division in the Vietnam War and received the Medal of Honor for conspicuous gallantry.
Kelley signed the keel by striking welding arcs onto a steel plate that will be incorporated into the ship. Kelley was assisted by Mark Cote, a welder with 46 years of experience in the shipyard.
“It is a privilege to be called upon to build this ship which will carry the name of an American hero,” said BIW President Charles F. Krugh. “BIW shipbuilders will build into this destroyer the level of quality that honors the bravery and dedication of its namesake and the Sailors who will serve on it in defense of our country.”
On June 15, 1969, Kelley was a lieutenant in charge of eight river assault craft tasked with extracting a company of Army troops in Kien Hoa Province. Just as one of the craft suffered a mechanical problem, enemy fighters opened fire from the far back. Kelley maneuvered his boats to protect the disabled boat. An enemy rocket damaged Kelley’s boat and his head was badly injured in the blast. Unable to get up from the deck or speak clearly into the radio, he continued giving orders through one of his men until the enemy attack was silenced.
“Lt. Cmdr. Kelley’s brilliant leadership, bold initiative and resolute determination served to inspire his men and provide the impetus needed to carry out the mission after he was medically evacuated by helicopter,” according to his Medal of Honor citation.
Bath Iron Works currently has under construction the 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).
More information about General Dynamics Bath Iron Works, a business unit of General Dynamics (NYSE: GD), can be found at www.gdbiw.com.