During a telephone conversation today with Dr. Dolores Etter, Assistant Secretary of the Navy for Research, Development, and Acquisition, U.S. Senator Susan Collins was informed that the U.S. Navy has decided that Bath Iron Works (BIW) will build the first DDG-1000 Zumwalt class destroyer.
"This is wonderful news for the skilled men and women of Bath Iron Works," said Senator Collins, a member of the Senate Armed Services Committee. "The Navy has decided that BIW will get the first set of Government Supplied Equipment (GSE), which includes materials such as the radar and guns purchased from other contractors, for installation on the first DDG-1000. This decision, which I had urged, will help prevent a gap in work between the completion of the last Arleigh Burke destroyer and construction of the first DDG-1000."
“It is a tribute to the dedication and skill of the BIW workers that the Navy has reversed its previous decision and now is providing the materials for the first DDG-1000 to BIW,” Senator Collins added.
Earlier this month, the Senate Appropriations Committee approved the fiscal year 2008 Department of
Defense Appropriations bill, which, at Senator Collins’ request, authorizes $2.9 billion for the second (and final) fiscal year funding for construction of the DDG-1000.