USS John S. McCain is an Arleigh Burke-class destroyer currently in the service of the US Navy. She is part of the Destroyer Squadron 15 within the Seventh Fleet, and her homeport at the Yokosuka Naval Base in Yokosuka, Japan.
According to CNN on May 30, 2019 – The White House’s request that the Navy hide a destroyer that honors Senator John McCain during President Trump’s recent trip to Japan has ignited a furor over how the administration, from the president down, has acted toward the Navy veteran and longtime Arizona lawmaker, who died in August 2018.
Although Mr. Trump denied personally playing any role in asking the Navy to prevent the U.S.S. John S. McCain from appearing in photographs with the president during his state visit, the disclosure of the White House’s request immediately turned the ship into a political symbol.
Trump and McCain, who died in August last year, did not like each other. Despite being a Republican member, McCain did not support Trump in the 2016 presidential election and also voted to block the health care law proposed by Trump in the Senate in 2017. The warship, named after Senator John McCain, along with his father and grandfather in honor of their dedication.
USS John S. McCain is an Arleigh Burke-class destroyer currently in the service of the US Navy. She is part of the Destroyer Squadron 15 within the Seventh Fleet, and her homeport at the Yokosuka Naval Base in Yokosuka, Japan.
The Arleigh Burke class of guided missile destroyers is the United States Navy’s first class of destroyer built around the Aegis Combat System and the SPY-1D multifunction passive electronically scanned array radar. The class is named for Admiral Arleigh Burke, an American destroyer officer in World War II, and later Chief of Naval Operations.
USS John S. McCain is named after John S. McCain, Sr (senior), and John S. McCain, Jr (junior)., both admirals in the United States Navy. John S. McCain, Sr. commanded the aircraft carrier USS Ranger, and later the Fast Carrier Task Force during the latter stages of World War II. John S. McCain, Jr. commanded the submarines USS Gunnel and USS Dentuda during World War II. He subsequently held a number of posts, rising to Commander-in-Chief of the United States Pacific Command, before retiring in 1972. These men were, respectively, the grandfather and father of retired U.S. Navy Captain, Naval Aviator, and former Vietnam Prisoner of War, Senator John S. McCain III. USS John S. McCain’s keel was laid down on September 3, 1991, at the Bath Iron Works in Bath, Maine. She was launched on September 26, 1992, sponsored by Cindy McCain, the wife of Senator John McCain III, and was commissioned on July 2, 1994, at the Bath Iron Works. The former President of the United States, George H. W. Bush, was the ceremony’s principal speaker.
According to the information on navy-site – The warship has 154m length, the beam is 20.4m, the draft is 9.3m. The McCain displaces 6900 tons under light load and approximate 8300 tons under full load.
Power is supplied from 4 General Electric LM2500-30 gas turbines with a capacity of 100,000 horse power and driving 2 Shafts under stern. This warship can reach speeds of more than 30 knots and has a range of up to 4,400 nautical miles. Nicknamed “Big Bad John,” the ship has a crew of 338 people.
The warship is equipped with the most modern technology of Arleigh Burke class destroyer:
The AN/SPY-1 is a passive electronically scanned system and is a key component of the Aegis Combat System. The system is computer controlled, using four complementary antennas to provide 360 degree coverage.
The AN/SPS-67 short-range, two-dimensional, surface-search radar system that provides highly accurate surface and limited low-flyer detection and tracking capabilities.
AN/SPG-62 fire-control radar, AN/SQS-53C sonar array. The ship is also outfitted with AN/SQQ-28 LAMPS III. The purpose of LAMPS was to scout outside the limits of a fleet’s radar and sonar range to detect and track enemy submarines or missile-equipped escort ships and feed the real-time data back to their LAMPS mothership. There is the MK 36 Mod 12 decoy-launching unit and the AN/SLQ-25 “Nixie” torpedo countermeasures suite for self-defense. AN/SLQ-32 for Electronic Warfare.
USS John S. McCain’s weapon system includes two MK 41 VLS for Standard missiles, Tomahawk; Harpoon missile launchers, one Mk 45 5-inch caliber lightweight gun, two Phalanx Close-in weapon system, Mk 46 torpedoes are carried to counter threats from submarines and surface warships at range.
This warship has an airplane deck, 2 Sikorsky MH-60R helicopters can be embarked. These helicopters are responsible for searching, tracking and attracting enemy submarines and warships.
The ship launched Tomahawk missiles as a part of the United States’ invasion of Iraq in 2003, but it has spent most of its time in the waters around East Asia and participated in relief efforts after an earthquake struck Japan in 2011.
The McCain collided with an oil tanker near Singapore in August 2017, killing 10 American sailors and prompting a Navy investigation and the removal of the ship’s two top officers. The chief of naval operations, Adm. John M. Richardson, said that the collision had been “avoidable.” The McCain has been undergoing repairs and left dry dock in November, according to the Navy, which said the work on the ship was expected to be finished later this year.
Senator John McCain has left many imprints in his career, especially for Vietnam. He frequently visited Vietnam in an effort to bring the two countries closer together. McCain has also strongly supported peace, security and order under international law in the South China Sea, criticizing China’s militaries in the region. For Vietnamese people, McCain is really a friend. Sad to the incident with the ship DDG-56 named after him.
