The Navy’s new Arleigh Burke–class destroyer commemorates a pioneering figure.
The Navy’s new Arleigh Burke–class destroyer commemorates a pioneering figure.
U.S. Navy

Naval History News

August 2022
Naval History Magazine
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Navy Commissions Ship Named in Honor of Frank E. Petersen Jr.

Frank E. Petersen Jr.
Frank E. Petersen Jr. was the first African-American U.S. Marine Corps aviator in history, as well as the Corps’ first African-American three-star general. Credit: Naval History and Heritage Command

In a ceremony attended by Secretary of the Navy Carlos Del Toro and Chief of Naval Operations Admiral Mike Gilday, the U.S. Navy commissioned its latest Arleigh Burke–class destroyer, the USS Frank E. Petersen Jr. (DDG-121), in Charleston, South Carolina, on 14 May. The ship is named in honor of the first black U.S.

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