USS Gonzalez

USS Gonzalez (DDG-66) is an Arleigh Burke-class destroyer in the United States Navy. She is named for Sergeant Alfredo Cantu Gonzalez, a Medal of Honor recipient in the Vietnam War.

USS Gonzalez cruises in the Mediterranean Sea.
History
United States
Name: USS Gonzalez
Namesake: Alfredo Cantu Gonzalez
Ordered: 16 January 1991
Builder: Bath Iron Works, Bath, Maine
Laid down: 3 February 1994
Launched: 18 February 1995
Acquired: 14 June 1996
Commissioned: 12 October 1996
Motto: "Beyond the Call"
Status: in active service
Badge:
General characteristics
Class and type: Arleigh Burke-class destroyer
Displacement:
  • Light: approx. 6,800 long tons (6,900 t)
  • Full: approx. 8,900 long tons (9,000 t)
Length: 505 ft (154 m)
Beam: 66 ft (20 m)
Draft: 31 ft (9.4 m)
Propulsion: 4 General Electric LM2500-30 gas turbines, two shafts, 100,000 total shaft horsepower (75 MW)
Speed: >30 knots (56 km/h; 35 mph)
Range:
Complement:
Sensors and
processing systems:
Electronic warfare
& decoys:
Armament:
Aircraft carried: 2 Sikorsky MH-60R helicopters can be embarked

History

The warship took part in Operation Allied Force, firing Tomahawk cruise missiles at Serbian targets in 1999. She also assisted a cruise ship, Seabourn Spirit, after an abortive attack by pirates off the coast of Somalia in 2005.[1]

On 1 March 2006, she rescued the crew of an Iranian ship, whose engine and rudder were broken down since 18 February. The Iranian crew were returned to Iran. She was involved in the Action of 18 March 2006 with suspected pirates, along with the cruiser USS Cape St. George. The two U.S. warships exchanged fire with the suspected pirates about 25 nautical miles (46 km) off the coast of Somalia. Initial reports indicated that one suspected pirate was killed and five others wounded.

On 17 July 2006, CNN reported that Gonzalez would be deployed to help in evacuation efforts of American citizens from Lebanon in the midst of the 2006 Israel-Lebanon conflict. On 26 July 2006, Frank James of The Chicago Tribune reported on the evacuation efforts of Gonzalez.[2]

Gonzalez in the Atlantic, 2003

References
  1. "EODMU 8 Removes Inert RPG Remnant from Cruise Liner". U.S. Navy. 7 November 2005. Retrieved 21 February 2019.
  2. James, Frank (26 July 2006). "The Swamp: Patriotism at sea". Chicago Tribune. Archived from the original on 22 March 2012. Retrieved 15 July 2010.
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