Lily Stevens Becker, daughter of the late Alaska Sen. Ted Stevens, visited the destroyer named for her father during its stop at Naval Base San Diego ahead of its commissioning in Whittier next month.
Becker is one of three sponsors of the future USS Ted Stevens (DDG 128). The other sponsors are the senator’s widow, Catherine Ann Stevens, and his daughter Susan Stevens Covich. These sponsors represent the ship’s enduring connection to the Stevens family throughout the vessel’s operational lifetime.
The ceremony will bring the warship bearing Stevens’ name to Alaska, where he served more than 40 years in the US Senate. Before entering politics, Stevens flew missions in the China-Burma-India theater during World War II.
Built by Ingalls shipbuilders, DDG 128 Arleigh Burke-class Flight III destroyers feature the AN/SPY-6(V)1 Air and Missile Defense Radar and incorporate upgrades to electrical power and cooling capacity plus additional associated changes to provide enhanced warfighting capability to the Fleet.
The ship arrived at its future homeport of Norfolk, Virginia, in May after leaving Ingalls Shipbuilding. It will be homeported there following the Alaska commissioning.