The Arleigh Burke-class of guided missile destroyers serving the United States Navy (USN) represents a surface warfare group numbering 62 ships (75 planned as of 2013). The class is built upon the concept of balance in which speed and firepower are major qualities for the vessels can be called upon to serve anywhere in the world and tackle a variety of mission roles - air defense, offshore bombardment/missile strike, interception, anti-piracy deterrence and the like and is thusly equipped with an array of weaponry for the role. Destroyers of the USN are designed to operate either as part of the main surface fleet or independently as the situation allows.
The USS Barry (DDG-52) represents an entry into the Arleigh Burke-class of fighting ships and is named after Commodore John Barry (1745-1803), regarded as the "father of the American Navy". Barry served as an officer in the burgeoning US Navy (then known as the Continental Navy) and became its first captain of a commissioned warship. Barry served in the Revolutionary War and took part in several of its key naval battles including the Battle of Turtle Gut Inlet off of the New Jersey coast - an American victory. USS Barry was ordered on May 26th,1987 and saw her keel laid down on May 10th, 1991. She was launched on May 10th, 1991 and formally commissioned on December 12th, 1992. She makes her homeport out of Norfolk, Virginia, fights under the motto of "Strength and Diversity" and is the forth USN vessel to carry the Barry name.
Structurally, the USS Barry has been given the same conventional design as seen across the entire Arleigh Burke-class destroyer family. The is a relatively unobstructed forecastle featuring the deck gun and the forward missile cell. The bridge is located high atop the forward superstructure to which the main mast is affixed managing the requisite communications, tracking and sensor equipment. A digitally controlled Phalanx unit is ahead and below of the bridge to protect the forward quadrant of the vessel. The other installation is fitted aft overlooking the stern. The Barry is fitted with four turbine engines which requires four smoke funnels and these are carried in pairs across two low-profile, enclosed casements, one just aft of the forward superstructure and the other as part of the rear superstructure. The aft missile cell bay is just ahead of the helicopter flight deck, the latter set at the stern.
Dimensionally, the Barry features a length of 505 feet, beam of 55 feet and draught of 21 feet. She displaces at 6,900 tons under light load and 9,000 tons under full load. She is powered by 4 x General Electric LM2500-30 series gas turbines driving 2 x shafts at 100,000 horsepower. This provides the vessel with a maximum speed of 30 knots and a range of 4,400 nautical miles. The Barry is typically crewed by 280 personnel made up of senior officers, petty officers and enlisted.
The Barry is outfitted with a modern array of processing and senor equipment headed by the AN/SPY-1D 3-dimension radar system. Surface search is managed by the AN/SPS-67(V)2 and AN/SPS-73(V)12 installations. The vessel also sports anti-submarine functions in the form of an AN/SQS-53C sonar array integrated into the hull and the AN/SPS-19 Tactical Towed Array (TTA) which can be dragged behind the vessel during patrols. Anti-submarine functions are also aided by the AN/SQQ-28 "LAMPS III" system mated to its naval Anti-Submarine Warfare (ASW) helicopters carried aboard. The Barry supports 1 x Sikorsky SH-60 Sea Hawk along a stern-based flight deck.
Barry's career began almost immediately following commissioning as she completed her shakedown and took on her final equipment. In November of 1993, she was positioned off the coast of Haiti to enforce an arms and fuel embargo to the embattled Caribbean nation. In March of 1994, Barry took part in "MAYFLEX 94", proving her anti-capabilities sound when she engaged two in-flight Exocet anti-ship missiles utilizing her integrated onboard systems as part of a battle group. In May, Barry headed east to Mediterranean waters on her first foreign deployment ultimately taking part in UN actions during the Bosnia War. In October, she was redeployed to the Persian Gulf as a deterrent against Iraqi troop movements along the Kuwaiti border.
Following a relatively quiet period, the Barry was once again pressed into action during the 2006 Israeli-Lebanon War which required her military presence in rescuing trapped Americans in the region. The Barry served alongside the USS Gonzalez (DDG-66), another Arleigh Burke-class destroyer, in ensuring safety for the Orient Queen charged with taking on American civilians.
In March of 2011, the Barry served as part of the UN resolution to protect civilian strongholds during the 2011 Libyan Civil War. Barry was able to utilize her vertical launch cells in the firing of Tomahawk cruise missiles offshore against inland Libyan targets, primarily those as related to air defense in preparation for coalition aircraft to begin their bombing campaign. The war eventually ended with the capture and death of Libyan dictator Muammar Gaddafi and an uncertain future for the Libyan people.
In August of 2013, the USS Barry retained her position in the Mediterranean as the UN and United States debated on whether to commit to military action against Syrian leadership in response to the bloody civil war being waged. The situation has brought about international condemnation for use of chemical weapons by either government forces or rebel elements. The USS Barry stands with several of her sisters, two USN aircraft carriers and an unknown number of attack submarines in preparation for a possible US strike on Syrian government forces (assumed the culprit of the chemical-based rocket attacks that killed over 1,000).
Note: The above text is EXCLUSIVE to the site www.MilitaryFactory.com. It is the product of many hours of research and work made possible with the help of contributors, veterans, insiders, and topic specialists. If you happen upon this text anywhere else on the internet or in print, please let us know at MilitaryFactory AT gmail DOT com so that we may take appropriate action against the offender / offending site and continue to protect this original work.
USS Arleigh Burke (DDG-51); USS Barry (DDG-52); USS John Paul Jones (DDG-53); USS Curtis Wilber (DDG-54); USS Stout (DDG-55); USS John S. McCain (DDG-56); USS Mitscher (DDG-57); USS Laboon (DDG-58); USS Russell (DDG-59); USS Paul Hamilton (DDG-60); USS Ramage (DDG-61); USS Fitzgerald (DDG-62); USS Stethem (DDG-63); USS Carney (DDG-64); USS Benfold (DDG-65); USS Gonzalez (DDG-66); USS Cole (DDG-67); USS The Sullivans (DDG-68); USS Milius (DDG-69); USS Hopper (DDG-70); USS Ross (DDG-71); USS Mahan (DDG-72); USS Decatur (DDG-73); USS McFaul (DDG-74); USS Donald Cook (DDG-75); USS Higgins (DDG-76); USS O'Kane (DDG-77); USS Porter (DDG-78); USS Oscar Austin (DDG-79); USS Roosevelt (DDG-80); USS Winston S. Churchill (DDG-81); USS Lassen (DDG-82); USS Howard (DDG-83); USS Bulkeley (DDG-84); USS McCampbell (DDG-85); USS Shoup (DDG-86); USS Mason (DDG-87); USS Preble (DDG-88); USS Mustin (DDG-89); USS Chafee (DDG-90); USS Pinkney (DDG-91); USS Momsen (DDG-92); USS Chung-Hoon (DDG-93); USS Nitze (DDG-94); USS James E. Williams (DDG-95); USS Bainbridge (DDG-96); USS Halsey (DDG-97); USS Forrest Sherman (DDG-98); USS Farragut (DDG-99); USS Kidd (DDG-100); USS Gridley (DDG-101); USS Sampson (DDG-102); USS Truxtun (DDG-103); USS Sterett (DDG-104); USS Dewey (DDG-105); USS Stockdale (DDG-106); USS Gravely (DDG-107); USS Wayne E. Meyer (DDG-108); USS Jason Dunham (DDG-109); USS William P. Lawrence (DDG-110); USS Spruance (DDG-111); USS Michael Murphy (DDG-112); USS John Finn (DDG-113); USS Ralph Johnson (DDG-114); USS Rafael Peralta (DDG-115); USS Thomas Hunter (DDG-116); USS Paul Ignatius (DDG-117); Daniel Inouye (DDG-118); Delbert D. Black (DDG-119); Unnamed (DDG-120); Unnamed (DDG-121); Unnamed (DDG-122; Unnamed (DDG-122); Unnamed (DDG-123); Unnamed (DDG-124); Unnamed (DDG-125); Unnamed (DDG-126) Ships-in-Class
Offshore Bombardment
Offshore bombardment / attack of surface targets / areas primarily through onboard ballistic weaponry.
Land-Attack
Offshore strike of surface targets primarily through onboard missile / rocket weaponry.
Maritime Patrol
Active patroling of vital waterways and maritime areas; can also serve as local deterrence against airborne and seaborne threats.
Airspace Denial / Deterrence
Neutralization or deterrence of airborne elements through onboard ballistic of missile weaponry.
Fleet Support
Serving in support (either firepower or material) of the main surface fleet in Blue Water environments.
505.0 feet (153.92 meters) Length
66.0 feet (20.12 meters) Beam
31.0 feet (9.45 meters) Draught
7,000 tons Displacement
4 x General Electric LM2500-30 gas turbines developing 100,000 shaft horsepower to 2 x shafts. Propulsion
1 x 29-cell Mk 41 Vertical Launch System (VLS) missile launcher (90 x RIM-156, Tomahawk, RIM-139).
1 x 61-cell Mk 41 Vertical Launch System (VLS) missile launcher (90 x RIM-156, Tomahawk, RIM-139).
1 x Mark 45 5/54 (127mm / 54cal) deck gun
2 x 25mm chain guns
2 x 20mm Phalanx Close-In Weapon Systems (CIWS)
4 x 12.7mm heavy machine guns
1 x Sikorsky SH-60 Sea Hawk navy Anti-Submarine Warfare (ASW) helicopter.
The "Military Factory" name and MilitaryFactory.com logo are registered ® U.S. trademarks protected by all applicable domestic and international intellectual property laws. All written content, illustrations, and photography are unique to this website (unless where indicated) and not for reuse/reproduction in any form. Material presented throughout this website is for historical and entertainment value only and should not to be construed as usable for hardware restoration, maintenance, or general operation. We do not sell any of the items showcased on this site. Please direct all other inquiries to militaryfactory AT gmail.com. No A.I. was used in the generation of this content; site is 100% curated by humans.
