USS J. William Middendorf

	J. William Middendorf's sister ship John E. Kilmer; (artist's rendering)
History
United States
Name	J. William Middendorf
Namesake	J. William Middendorf
Builder	Bath Iron Works
Identification	Hull number: DDG-138
Status	Authorized
General characteristics
Class & type	Arleigh Burke-class destroyer
Displacement	9,217 tons (full load)
Length	510 ft (160 m)
Beam	66 ft (20 m)
Propulsion	4 × General Electric LM2500 gas turbines 100,000 shp (75,000 kW)
Speed	31 knots (57 km/h; 36 mph)
Complement	380 officers and enlisted
Armament	Guns:; 1 × 5-inch (127 mm)/62 Mk 45 Mod 4 (lightweight gun); 1 × 20 mm (0.8 in) Phalanx CIWS; 2 × 25 mm (0.98 in) Mk 38 machine gun system; 4 × 0.50 in (12.7 mm) caliber guns; Missiles:; 1 × 32-cell, 1 × 64-cell (96 total cells) Mk 41 vertical launching system (VLS):; RIM-66M surface-to-air missile; RIM-156 surface-to-air missile; RIM-174A Standard ERAM; RIM-161 anti-ballistic missile; RIM-162 ESSM (quad-packed); BGM-109 Tomahawk cruise missile; RUM-139 vertical launch ASROC; Torpedoes:; 2 × Mark 32 triple torpedo tubes:; Mark 46 lightweight torpedo; Mark 50 lightweight torpedo; Mark 54 lightweight torpedo;
Armor	Kevlar-type armor with steel hull. Numerous passive survivability measures.
Aircraft carried	2 × MH-60R Seahawk helicopters
Aviation facilities	Double hangar and helipad

USS J. William Middendorf (DDG-138) is the planned 88th Arleigh Burke-class (Flight III) Aegis guided missile destroyer of the United States Navy.^[2] She will honor J. William Middendorf, a former Secretary of the Navy and US Ambassador to the Netherlands. The name was announced 10 June 2022.^[3]

Construction

In June 2022, the Secretary of the Navy announced that an Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyer would be named USS J. William Middendorf, to be built by General Dynamics Bath Iron Works.^[4] The keel plate unveiling ceremony was held on 11 December 2023, at the Naval War College in Newport, Rhode Island.^[5]

References

^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e "DDG-51 Arleigh Burke-class". Federation of American Scientists. FAS.org. 2 November 2016. Retrieved 9 June 2021.
^ "J. William Middendorf (DDG-138)". Naval Vessel Register. Retrieved 19 May 2022.
^ "SECNAV Names Future Arleigh Burke-class Destroyer USS J. William Middendorf". United States Navy. 10 June 2022. Retrieved 13 June 2022.
^ Cohen, Ted (27 October 2025). "Ex-Navy Secretary For Whom Bath Iron Works Destroyer To Be Christened Dead at 101". The Maine Wire. Retrieved 19 November 2025.
^ Mooney, Tom (12 December 2023). "This RI resident, former Navy secretary, will have a destroyer named after him. What to know". The Providence Journal. Retrieved 19 November 2025.

This article incorporates public domain material from J William Middendorf (DDG-138) at the Naval Vessel Register.

[FAS.org-1] "DDG-51 Arleigh Burke-class". Federation of American Scientists. FAS.org. 2 November 2016. Retrieved 9 June 2021.

[NVR-2] "J. William Middendorf (DDG-138)". Naval Vessel Register. Retrieved 19 May 2022.

[3] "SECNAV Names Future Arleigh Burke-class Destroyer USS J. William Middendorf". United States Navy. 10 June 2022. Retrieved 13 June 2022.

[4] Cohen, Ted (27 October 2025). "Ex-Navy Secretary For Whom Bath Iron Works Destroyer To Be Christened Dead at 101". The Maine Wire. Retrieved 19 November 2025.

[5] Mooney, Tom (12 December 2023). "This RI resident, former Navy secretary, will have a destroyer named after him. What to know". The Providence Journal. Retrieved 19 November 2025.

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