USS Jason Dunham Leads Strait Transit Exercise

By Mass Communication Specialist 2nd Class (SW/AW) William Jamieson, USS Dwight D. Eisenhower Public Affairs

ATLANTIC OCEAN (NNS) -- Sailors aboard guided-missile destroyer USS Jason Dunham (DDG 109) successfully led a simulated strait transit off the eastern coast of the United States May 8.

The exercise was designed to test the participant ship's ability to navigate safely, while also dealing with threats that could be encountered transiting straits in hostile waters.

"This exercise really helped to drive home the importance of coordination and communication between watchstanders, our bridge, and the other ships in the surface action group," said Cmdr. David A. Bretz, commanding officer of Jason Dunham. "Every member of the crew had an important part to play in this exercise, and I'm proud to say they performed up to the high expectations of Jason Dunham."

The surface action group participating in the Jason Dunham-led exercise consisted of guided-missile destroyers USS Farragut (DDG 99) and USS Oscar Austin (DDG 79); and guided-missile frigates USS Carr (FFG 52) and USS Klakring (FFG 42).

During the transit, the surface action group was confronted with multiple possible threats, including low-flying aircraft, small boats, and the presence of mines.

"We know we have to go into any strait transit, real or simulated, knowing anything can happen," said Ensign Omar Amakhtari, who served as officer of the deck aboard Jason Dunham during the exercise. "If one watchstander isn't doing his or her job for one moment, it can provide enough of an opening to compromise the ship. Our guys are mindful of that, and they did a great job of showing it."

Special care was taken throughout the exercise to avoid escalating an encounter and turning it into an unnecessary conflict.

"The men and women manning weapons on board are well trained and understand you have to stay calm while maintaining vigilance," said Amakhtari. "Our goal is to pass through without an incident, but we want to always be ready to respond and deal with any situation we confront."

Jason Dunham is a part of Carrier Strike Group 8, which is underway conducting a composite training unit exercise (COMPTUEX) in the Atlantic Ocean, while preparing for their maiden deployment.

By Mass Communication Specialist 1st Class Steve Smith, Enterprise Carrier Strike Group Public Affairs

By Mass Communication Specialist 2nd Class William Jamieson, USS Dwight D. Eisenhower Public Affairs

USS JASON DUNHAM, At Sea (NNS) -- Members of the visit, board, search and seizure (VBSS) team aboard the guided-missile destroyer USS Jason Dunham (DDG 109) conducted a simulated boarding of training support vessel Prevail (TSV 1), May 6.

The boarding exercise was conducted as a part of the Carrier Strike Group Eight composite training unit exercise (COMPTUEX) to provide hands-on training to VBSS team members before Jason Dunham's upcoming deployment.

"When you do one of these exercises, you never know what to expect," said VBSS team member, Ensign Ryan Kelly. "You have to rely on your training and the other team members, and that is exactly how it is in a real-world situation."

As part of the exercise, the team members boarded Prevail after Jason Dunham established bridge-to-bridge communications and determined Prevail qualified as a vessel of interest.

Once aboard Prevail, team members encountered a crew that was "uncooperative" and discovered contraband, including drugs and weapons.

"At that point, we knew we were going to have to detain the vessel," said team member, Quartermaster 2nd Class David Rodriguez. "We phoned back to Jason Dunham and had them send over the ship-control team."

A ship-control team takes control of detained vessels and consists of damage control, deck and engineering personnel fully capable of controlling and managing any situation a vessel might encounter while transiting to the nearest port.

"We were fully prepared to take control and stay on the ship for 24-48 hours," said ship-control team member, Boatswain's Mate 1st Class Ronald Virgin.

After the ship-control team demonstrated their ability to navigate and control the ship both teams were called together for debriefing.

"We had a successful boarding and learned a lot during the exercise," said Kelly. "We just want to keep this momentum going into our deployment. We can't know what we might see out there, but I think we all realize we can trust each other during a boarding. That's all you can really ask."

Jason Dunham is a part of Carrier Strike Group Eight, which is underway conducting a COMPTUEX in the Atlantic Ocean.

Future USS Jason Dunham Completes "Super Trials"

WASHINGTON (NNS) -- The future USS Jason Dunham (DDG 109), the 58th ship of the Arleigh Burke-class, successfully completed a combined builder's and acceptance "super trial" May 20, after spending four days at sea operating in the Atlantic Ocean.

Because of the maturity of the class, the Navy holds only one round of trials on each ship prior to delivery, instead of separate builder's and acceptance trials. This "super trial" requires less time, fuel and manpower than the typical method.

During the trial, Bath Iron Works and the U.S. Navy's Board of Inspection and Survey (INSURV) tested the ship's weapons, communications, and propulsion systems as well as conducting several other inspections including habitability, water purification and food preparation.

"DDG 109 performed extremely well for INSURV and proved that the DDG 51 class continues to meet the Navy's expectations in both cost and schedule performance," said Capt. Pete Lyle, DDG 51-class program manager for the Navy's Program Executive Office (PEO) Ships. "The success of these trials illustrates the cost and schedule advantages realized with a program well into serial production."

The DDG 51 class ship is a multimission guided missile destroyer designed to operate in multithreat air, surface and subsurface threat environments. The class provides outstanding combat capability and survivability characteristics while minimizing procurement and lifetime support costs due to the program's maturity. The DDG 51 program continues to reinforce affordability and efficiency in its shipbuilding program, with a commitment to deliver ships at the highest possible quality allowing seamless transition to the fleet.

These trials are the last significant milestone before delivery of the ship to the Navy. The future USS Jason Dunham is expected to deliver this summer, and to be officially commissioned in November.

As one of the Defense Department's largest acquisition organizations, PEO Ships is responsible for executing the development and procurement of all major surface combatants, amphibious ships, special mission and support ships, and special warfare craft. Currently, the majority of shipbuilding programs managed by PEO Ships are benefiting from serial production efficiencies, which are critical to delivering ships on cost and schedule.

Crew of New Multimission Destroyer Honors Namesake in Mast Stepping Ceremony

Image submitted on occasion of the Department of Navy announcement that the Navy's newest Arleigh Burke-class guided missile destroyer will be named USS Jason Dunham (DDG 109), honoring the late Cpl. Jason L. Dunham, the first Marine awarded the Medal of Honor for Operation Iraqi Freedom. The Secretary of the Navy, the Honorable Donald C. Winter, made the announcement in Dunham’s hometown of Scio, N.Y. U.S. Navy illustration (RELEASED)

WASHINGTON (NNS) -- The crew of Pre-Commissioning Unit Jason Dunham (DDG 109) conducted a mast stepping ceremony July 11 at Bath Iron Works Shipyard in Bath, Maine.

Mast stepping, or the process of putting coins in the mast of a newly constructed ship, is a tradition dating back to the ancient Greek civilization. The U.S. Navy continues the ritual to this day, and the coins now symbolize aspects of the ship's heritage and remain forever welded in the masts of today's warships.

The ship's prospective commanding officer, Cmdr. Scott Sciretta, led the ceremony and included Dan and Deb Dunham, the parents of Jason Dunham; Marine Maj. Trent A. Gibson, Dunham's former company commander; and more than 100 members of the ship's pre-commissioning crew.

"This ship represents the man who laid down his life for his fellow Marines. Remember that selfless devotion to duty as you work and live on this ship," said Gibson.

On April 14, 2004, Dunham's squad was conducting a reconnaissance mission in Karabilah, Iraq, when his battalion commander's convoy was ambushed. When Dunham approached to provide fire support, an Iraqi insurgent leapt out of a vehicle and attacked Dunham. As he wrestled the insurgent to the ground, he noticed that the enemy fighter had a grenade in his hand. Dunham immediately alerted his fellow Marines, and when the enemy dropped the live grenade, Dunham covered it with his Kevlar helmet and threw himself on top to smother the blast. In an ultimately selfless act of courage, in which he was mortally wounded, he saved the lives of two fellow Marines.

Dunham was posthumously awarded the Medal of Honor.

"[When] I received a call from my detailer telling me I was being offered to take command of USS Jason Dunham, I had heard the story behind the man but didn't know the details," said Sciretta. "When I looked it up and saw the significance of the name, I told him I'd do it. And as soon as I told my wife about Jason's story and the ship, she immediately said, 'When do we start packing?'"

The ceremony ended when Sciretta, Gibson and the Dunhams placed a small package containing items such as the last letter Cpl. Dunham wrote home, a set of his dog tags, his Purple Heart and the guidon for his company into a small metal box inside of the warship's mast. Aided by a master welder, the group welded the box closed, permanently sealing the items in the mast of the ship. In addition, Dunham's dress blue uniform will be displayed in a case on the destroyer's wardroom for the crew to see.

In the spirit of its namesake, USS Jason Dunham will continue protecting America's liberty by providing a dynamic multi-mission platform to lead the Navy into the future. Utilizing a gas-turbine propulsion system, the ship can operate independently or as part of carrier strike groups, surface action groups, amphibious ready groups and underway replenishment groups. With the combination of the Aegis combat system, the vertical launching system, an advanced anti-submarine warfare system, advanced anti-aircraft missiles and Tomahawk cruise missiles, the Arleigh Burke class continues the revolution at sea.

The ship is slated to be christened August 1 and commissioned in 2010.