DDG 51 Arleigh Burke Class Guided Missile Destroyer

The DDG 51 Arleigh Burke Class Guided Missile Destroyer program is a Major Defense Acquisition Program (MDAP) managed by the Naval Sea Systems Command (NAVSEA) under the Major Capability Acquisition (MCA) pathway. The program encompasses the construction, maintenance, modernization, and sustainment of the Navy's Arleigh Burke-class guided missile destroyers. Two major shipbuilding contracts were awarded in August 2023: $13.7 billion to Bath Iron Works Corporation and $15.8 billion to Huntington Ingalls Inc. for the construction of up to ten DDG 51 Flight III destroyers each between fiscal years 2023-2027.

Contract awards under this program range from small purchases of less than $10,000 for items such as flags and training services to multi-million dollar awards for ship construction, maintenance, and modernization. Major prime contractors include Bath Iron Works Corporation, Huntington Ingalls Inc., Vigor Marine LLC, Metro Machine Corp (NASSCO), Delphinus Engineering Inc., and Goodrich Corporation's Engineered Polymer Products division. Common services include lead yard support, follow yard support, continuous maintenance availability (CMAV), selected restricted availability (SRA), and post-shakedown availability (PSA) work. Primary places of performance include Bath, Maine; Pascagoula, Mississippi; and various naval facilities in Washington state, particularly Everett. While most large contracts do not carry set-aside designations, some smaller contracts are set aside for small businesses. The majority of funding flows through NAVSEA, with contract types including firm-fixed-price, cost-plus-award-fee, and cost-plus-fixed-fee arrangements.