Bath Iron Works photos show destroyer fleet taking shape in Bath

The June 10 photos from Bath show more than a snapshot of shipbuilding activity. They show a busy destroyer pipeline at Bath Iron Works, where five guided-missile destroyers were visible at different stages of construction or fitting out while the yard kept seven hulls under work and began another just nine days earlier.

The ships in view were future USS William Charette, DDG 130; USS Quentin Walsh, DDG 132; USS John E. Kilmer, DDG 134; USS Louis H. Wilson Jr., DDG 126; and USS Patrick Gallagher, DDG 127. Together, they offer a clear picture of a yard moving multiple Navy contracts at once, with work spread across Flight IIA and Flight III versions of the Arleigh Burke-class destroyer.

That pace matters for Bath because the Navy accepted delivery of Patrick Gallagher on May 28, more than two months ahead of schedule after strong builder’s sea trials. The Navy called it the final Flight IIA Arleigh Burke-class destroyer, a milestone that closes one chapter of the DDG 51 program even as BIW keeps the next one moving. Patrick Gallagher was launched on Dec. 3, 2023, and christened on July 27, 2024, before reaching delivery this spring.

The other ships in the frame show how much work still sits in the pipeline. BIW says it currently has under construction Harvey C. Barnum Jr., DDG 124, along with Patrick Gallagher, DDG 127; 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. William Charette’s keel was laid on Aug. 29, 2024, and Quentin Walsh’s on May 20, 2025, markers that show how quickly one hull can move from keel to outfitting while the next takes its place in the production line.

The work is not slowing down. BIW began building the future USS J. William Middendorf, DDG 138, on May 19, extending the destroyer run beyond the hulls already visible in Bath. That continuity is important for the local economy: every destroyer supports skilled labor, subcontractors, materials suppliers and waterfront operations across Sagadahoc County and the wider Midcoast industrial base.

SUPSHIP Bath, the Navy office that oversees work at the yard, supervises construction of six ship classes at private shipyards. In Bath, that oversight sits on top of a long record that includes BIW winning the competition to design and build USS Arleigh Burke, DDG 51, in 1985 and delivering USS Zumwalt, DDG 1000, in 2016. The cluster of destroyers now visible along the waterfront suggests both progress and pressure: a healthy backlog, a demanding delivery schedule and continuing confidence that Bath Iron Works can keep turning Navy work into finished ships.