|
USS KIDD (DDG-100) It is a common practice for names to be passed on from one vessel to another over the course of time. The tradition is one that was inherited from the British Royal Navy to our own. And while it has been rare that the U.S. Navy will name a new ship by the same name as an older vessel that is still afloat, there are exceptions. One of these is the USS KIDD. |
|
|
Tugs gently guide USS KIDD (DDG-100) to her mooring after her launching on December 15, 2004. Photo courtesy of Northrup Grumman Shipyards.
|
The name KIDD has been borne by a Fletcher-class destroyer (DD-661) that served in World War II, the Korean War, and the early Cold War era. In 1981, a second KIDD (DDG-993) was launched, the lead ship of the Kidd-class guided missile destroyers which were a variant on the Spruance-class design. This vessel served through the latter days of the Cold War and during the hostilities of the Persian Gulf War in 1991.
On January 22, 2005, the legacy of RADM Isaac C. Kidd, Sr. was passed on to a new generation of destroyer: USS KIDD (DDG-100). The 50th Arleigh Burke-class guided missile destroyer to be built, she carries the powerful Aegis weapons system, capable of detecting, tracking, and engaging hundreds of aircraft and missiles simultaneously. |
|
The third KIDD was built at the Northrup Grumman Shipyards in Pascagoula, Mississippi—formerly Ingalls Shipbuilding Division of Litton Industries where her predecessor, USS KIDD (DDG-993), was built. She was launched on December 15, 2004, and christened by the granddaughters of RADM Kidd on January 22, 2005.
The KIDD was in the midst of final outfitting when Hurricane Katrina made landfall on the Mississippi Gulf coast on the morning of August 29, 2005. The massive storm surge and triple-digit winds that accompanied the Category 4 cyclone damaged the new destroyer, the shipyards, and other ships there in various stages of construction. |
Sisters Regina Kidd Wolbarsht (left) and Mary Corrinne Kidd Plumer (right) christen the third vessel to bear the name USS KIDD (DDG-100). Photo courtesy of Northrup Grumman Shipyards.
|
|
Following repairs at Pascagoula, the KIDD conducted sea trials in November of 2006 and was commissioned in Galveston, Texas, on June 09, 2007, with CDR Richard E. Thomas, USN, in command. USS KIDD (DDG-100) remains on active duty with the fleet. |
|
USS KIDD (DDG-100) on sea trials in the Gulf of Mexico in November 2006. Official U.S. Navy photograph.
|
USS KIDD (DDG-100) commissions on the Galveston waterfront near the 1877 tall ship ELISSA. Photo copyright & courtesy of Ken Dugas.
|
|
Ship's Statistics
|
|
**Copyright 1997-2007 by Louisiana Naval War Memorial Commission** |
