USS Fitzgerald (DDG 62)

USS FITZGERALD is the twelfth ARLEIGH BURKE class guided missile destroyer and the seventh ship in that class built by Bath Iron Works.

General Characteristics:	Keel Laid: February 9, 1993
	Christened: January 29, 1994
	Commissioned: October 14, 1995
	Builder: Bath Iron Works, Bath, Maine
	Propulsion system: four General Electric LM 2500 gas turbine engines
	Propellers: two
	Blades on each Propeller: five
	Length: 505,25 feet (154 meters)
	Beam: 67 feet (20.4 meters)
	Draft: 30,5 feet (9.3 meters)
	Displacement: approx. 8.300 tons full load
	Speed: 30+ knots
	Aircraft: None. But LAMPS 3 electronics installed on landing deck for coordinated DDG/helicopter ASW operations.
	Armament: two Mk 41 VLS for Standard missiles, Tomahawk; Harpoon missile launchers, one Mk 45 5-inch/54 caliber lightweight gun, two Phalanx CIWS, Mk 46 torpedoes (from two triple tube mounts)
	Homeport: Yokosuka, Japan
	Crew: 23 Officers, 24 Chief Petty Officers and 291 Enlisted

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Crew List:

This section contains the names of sailors who served aboard USS FITZGERALD. It is no official listing but contains the names of sailors who submitted their information.

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About the Ship’s Name, about Lieutenant William Charles Fitzgerald:

The FITZGERALD is named for Lieutenant William Charles Fitzgerald who was presented the Navy Cross posthumously for extraordinary heroism during combat operations in Vietnam.

He was born January 28, 1938, in Montpelier, Vermont, second child and first son of Louis and Mildred Mary Fitzgerald. His father was a career Navy man who retired as a Chief Petty Officer. Bill grew up in the local area and graduated from Montpelier High School in June 1956. Following graduation, Bill followed in his fathers footsteps and enlisted in the United States Navy. As an enlisted man Bill served in USS SAMUEL B. ROBERTS (DD 823), USS HUGH PURVIS (DD 709), and USS GEARING (DD 710). Also, Bill served with utility Squadron SIX, Naval Air Station Norfolk, VA while working on the Drone Anti-Submarine Helicopter (DASH) program. Seaman William Fitzgerald eventually earned selection to officer training and an appointment to the United States Naval Academy, Annapolis, Maryland.

On August 7, 1967, while serving as senior advisor to Coastal Group Sixteen, Lieutenant Fitzgerald's base was attacked and overrun by Viet Cong forces. Lieutenant Fitzgerald requested an artillery barrage be laid down on his position and ordered his men to evacuate the base toward a nearby river while he remained in a bunker providing fire. He was fatally shot by Viet Cong forces before he could escape.

Fitzgerald Hall at the Surface Warfare Officers School Command in Newport, Rhode Island, also is named for Lieutenant Fitzgerald.

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USS FITZGERALD Patch Gallery:

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USS FITZGERALD Image Gallery:

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