USS ''Benfold'' (DDG-65) is an in the

United States Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the maritime service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. It is the largest and most powerful navy in the world, with the estimated tonnage ...

. ''Benfold'' is a multi-mission platform capable of AAW (

Anti-Aircraft Warfare Anti-aircraft warfare, counter-air or air defence forces is the battlespace response to aerial warfare, defined by NATO as "all measures designed to nullify or reduce the effectiveness of hostile air action".AAP-6 It includes Surface-to-air m ...

) with the powerful

AEGIS The aegis ( ; grc, αἰγίς ''aigís''), as stated in the ''Iliad'', is a device carried by Athena and Zeus, variously interpreted as an animal skin or a shield and sometimes featuring the head of a Gorgon. There may be a connection with a d ...

combat systems suite and

anti-aircraft missiles Anti-aircraft missiles are guided missiles designed to destroy or damage aircraft. These include * air-to-air missile, a missile fired from an aircraft for the purpose of destroying another aircraft * subsurface-to-air missile, a missile usually la ...

, ASW (

Anti-submarine warfare Anti-submarine warfare (ASW, or in older form A/S) is a branch of underwater warfare that uses surface warships, aircraft, submarines, or other platforms, to find, track, and deter, damage, or destroy enemy submarines. Such operations are t ...

), with

towed sonar array A towed array sonar is a system of hydrophones towed behind a submarine or a surface ship on a cable. Trailing the hydrophones behind the vessel, on a cable that can be kilometers long, keeps the array's sensors away from the ship's own noise sour ...

, anti-submarine rockets, ASUW (

Anti-surface warfare Anti-surface warfare (ASuW or ASUW) is the branch of naval warfare concerned with the suppression of surface combatants. More generally, it is any weapons, sensors, or operations intended to attack or limit the effectiveness of an adversary's su ...

) with a Harpoon missile launcher, and strategic land strike using

Tomahawk missiles The Tomahawk () Land Attack Missile (TLAM) is a long-range, all-weather, jet-powered, subsonic cruise missile that is primarily used by the United States Navy and Royal Navy in ship and submarine-based land-attack operations. Under contract f ...

. ''Benfold'' was one of the first ships fitted with the Aegis Ballistic Missile Defense System and during the 2010 Stellar Daggers exercise was the first ship to simultaneously engage a ballistic missile and a cruise missile. Former ''Benfold'' commanding officers include ADM

Mark Ferguson Mark Ferguson (born 28 February 1961) is a New Zealand-based Australian actor and television presenter. Biography Born in Sydney, Australia, Ferguson attended the National Institute of Dramatic Art (NIDA) and graduated in 1981. In 1982, he p ...

, ADM Michael Gilday, VADM Thomas H. Copeman III, and author D. Michael Abrashoff.

Service history

Built by the

Ingalls Shipbuilding Ingalls Shipbuilding is a shipyard located in Pascagoula, Mississippi, United States, originally established in 1938, and now part of Huntington Ingalls Industries, HII. It is a leading producer of ships for the United States Navy, and at 12,500 ...

Corporation in Pascagoula, Mississippi, ''Benfold'' is the 15th of 76 planned ''Arleigh Burke''-class guided missile destroyers. Named for posthumous

Korean War , date = {{Ubl, 25 June 1950 – 27 July 1953 (''de facto'')({{Age in years, months, weeks and days, month1=6, day1=25, year1=1950, month2=7, day2=27, year2=1953), 25 June 1950 – present (''de jure'')({{Age in years, months, weeks a ...

United States Marine Corps The United States Marine Corps (USMC), also referred to as the United States Marines, is the maritime land force service branch of the United States Armed Forces responsible for conducting expeditionary and amphibious operations through combi ...

Medal of Honor The Medal of Honor (MOH) is the United States Armed Forces' highest military decoration and is awarded to recognize American soldiers, sailors, marines, airmen, guardians and coast guardsmen who have distinguished themselves by acts of valor. ...

recipient

Hospital Corpsman Third Class A hospital corpsman (HM r corpsman is an enlisted medical specialist of the United States Navy, who may also serve in a U.S. Marine Corps unit. The corresponding rating within the United States Coast Guard is health services technician (HS) ...

Edward Clyde Benfold Edward Clyde Benfold (January 15, 1931 – September 5, 1952) was a United States Navy hospital corpsman A hospital corpsman (HM r corpsman is an enlisted medical specialist of the United States Navy, who may also serve in a U.S. Marine C ...

, she joined the U.S. Pacific Fleet for service on 30 March 1996. Equipped with the AEGIS air-defense system and the Mark-41 Vertical Launch System for multiple types of guided missiles, ''Benfold'' is capable of defensive and offensive operations against warplanes, anti-ship missiles, surface ships, submarines, and shore targets. In addition to her missiles, she carries one 5-inch rapid-fire naval gun for action against surface ships and for shore bombardment. She also carries anti-submarine torpedoes, and two Phalanx anti-missile guns. She has a flight deck for MH-60R/S Seahawk Helicopters and is capable of refueling and re-arming these helicopters, but she does not have a hangar for storing and maintaining helicopters. USS BENFOLD CHANGE OF COMMAND OCT 2012

Modernization 2011

In 2011, ''Benfold'' entered drydock at

BAE Systems BAE Systems plc (BAE) is a British multinational arms, security, and aerospace company based in London, England. It is the largest defence contractor in Europe, and ranked the seventh-largest in the world based on applicable 2021 revenues. ...

San Diego to receive an extensive $32 million mid-life upgrade. The Hull Mechanical and Electrical (HM&E) upgrades included a fully integrated bridge, improved machinery and damage control, quality of life improvements, an advanced galley, and commercial-off-the-shelf computing equipment.

Naval exercises 2012

In 2012, USS ''Benfold'' was the first

San Diego San Diego ( , ; ) is a city on the Pacific Ocean coast of Southern California located immediately adjacent to the Mexico–United States border. With a 2020 population of 1,386,932, it is the List of United States cities by population, eigh ...

-based naval ship invited to participate in the Koa Kai naval exercises. ''Benfold'' conducted integrated flight operations, anti-surface and anti-submarine training, dynamic ship maneuvers, ballistic missile defense, small boat attacks and Maritime Interdiction Operations (MIO) utilizing the Visit, Board, Search and Seizure (VBSS) team.

Modernization 2013

In 2013, USS ''Benfold'' underwent extensive combat systems upgrades to include the installation of AEGIS Baseline 9C, Ballistic Missile Defense version 5.0, A(V) 15 SONAR Suite, and also became Cooperative Engagement Capability (CEC) capable.

Deployments

* 14 Aug 1997 19 Feb 1998

Persian Gulf The Persian Gulf ( fa, خلیج فارس, translit=xalij-e fârs, lit=Gulf of Persis, Fars, ), sometimes called the ( ar, اَلْخَلِيْجُ ٱلْعَرَبِيُّ, Al-Khalīj al-ˁArabī), is a Mediterranean sea (oceanography), me ...

* 18 Jun 1999 17 Dec 1999

Pacific Ocean The Pacific Ocean is the largest and deepest of Earth's five oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic Ocean in the north to the Southern Ocean (or, depending on definition, to Antarctica) in the south, and is bounded by the continen ...

/Persian Gulf * 13 Mar 2001 15 Sep 2001 Persian Gulf * 18 Oct 2004 1 Mar 2005 * 13 Sep 2006 13 Mar 2007 * 4 May 2008 3 Nov 2008 * 8 Sep 2009 16 Mar 2010 * 15 June 2012 11 Jan 2013 Persian Gulf * 2 Oct 2015 - TBD, U.S. 7th Fleet, Yokosuka, Japan On 19 November 2017 ''Benfold'' was involved in a minor collision with a Japanese commercial tug off Sagami Bay. The tug lost power and drifted into the ''Benfold'', causing damage described as minimal, with some scraping to the ship's side. No one was injured on either vessel; the ''Benfold'' continued at sea, while the tug was towed to Yokosuka.

Freedom of Navigation Operations

''Benfold'' has conducted the following Freedom of Navigation Operations (FONOPS) in the South China Sea: * 12 Jul 2021 - Paracel Islands * 8 Sep 2021 - Spratly Islands * 18 Jan 2022 - Spratly Islands * 20 Jan 2022 - Paracel Islands * 13 Jul 2022 - Paracel Islands * 16 Jul 2022 - Spratly Islands

Awards

*2003–2004 – USS ''Arizona'' Memorial Trophy Award, for "superior performance in combat readiness and battle efficiency." *1998 –

Spokane Trophy The Spokane Trophy is awarded by Commander United States Pacific Fleet on a cycle basis to the surface combatant ship considered to be the most proficient in overall combat systems readiness and warfare operations. The nomination will be submitted ...

Navy Unit Commendation The Navy Unit Commendation (NUC) is a United States Navy unit award that was established by order of the Secretary of the Navy James Forrestal on 18 December 1944. History Navy and U.S. Marine Corps commands may recommend any Navy or Marine Co ...

for 01-Oct-1997 to 30-Apr-1998 *

Meritorious Unit Commendation The Meritorious Unit Commendation (MUC; pronounced ''muck'') is a mid-level unit award of the United States Armed Forces. The U.S. Army awards units the Army MUC for exceptionally meritorious conduct in performance of outstanding achievement or s ...

as a part of the ''Constellation'' Battle Group for 01-Jan-1999 to 10-Sep-2001 * Armed Forces Expeditionary Medal, for four separate time periods between October 1997 and August 2001 *

Humanitarian Service Medal The Humanitarian Service Medal (HSM) is a military service medal of the United States Armed Forces which was created on January 19, 1977 by President Gerald Ford under . The medal may be awarded to members of the United States military (includi ...

for Operation Unified Assistance from 28-Dec-2004 to 12-Feb-2005 USS ''Benfold'' has been awarded the Navy

Battle "E" The Battle Effectiveness Award (formerly the Battle Efficiency Award, commonly known as the Battle "E"), is awarded annually to the small number of United States Navy ships, submarines, aviation, and other units that win their battle effectiveness c ...

several times * Calendar Year 1997 * CY1999 * CY2001 * CY2003, listed as "BENFOLD DDG 76" on awards site, year of ''Benfold'' DDG-65 / ''Higgins'' DDG-76 "Sea Swap" * CY2004 * CY2005 * CY2007 * CY2009 * CY2018

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Benfold (DDG-65) 1994 ships Destroyers of the United States Arleigh Burke-class destroyers Ships built in Pascagoula, Mississippi