The US Department of War (Department of Defense) has certified that General Dynamics Bath Iron Works in Maine has the production capacity to build a second destroyer in the guided-missile Arleigh Burke class in fiscal year 2027 (FY27), Senator Susan Collins announced on Monday, October 12.
The certification followed a multi-phase review of the yard's production flow, schedule performance, quality assurance, the resilience of its supply network and its workforce.
The department said construction of the additional ship remains contingent on Congress securing the necessary funding.
Deputy Secretary of War Steve Feinberg said the yard, "must continue this momentum to fully resolve legacy production challenges – sustained performance is essential."
The navy's FY27 budget request included one DDG 51, compared with two in FY26 and three in FY25. Collins chairs the Senate Appropriations Committee and had pressed for a second FY27 ship.
She said she worked with the administration "during its careful review and repeated visits to BIW to verify the ability of the shipyard to construct another ship while continuing to complete its current workload."
At a Senate hearing in May, Acting Secretary of the Navy Hung Cao said BIW had 11 destroyers on contract. Seven were under construction and work had not begun on the remaining four.
The navy took delivery of the BIW-built future USS Patrick Gallagher in May, more than two months ahead of schedule. That same month, BIW secured a contract for the future USS Robert R. Ingram (DDG 149).