USS Jack H. Lucas (DDG 125)

USS JACK H. LUCAS is the first ARLEIGH BURKE - class Flight III guided missile destroyer and the first ship in the Navy named after Jacklyn Harold "Jack H" Lucas. The Flight III upgrade is centered on the AN/SPY-6(V)1 Air and Missile Defense Radar (AMDR). It incorporates upgrades to the electrical power and cooling capacity plus additional associated changes to provide greatly enhanced warfighting capability. The AMDR enables Flight III ships to perform Anti-Air Warfare and Ballistic Missile Defense simultaneously.

General Characteristics:	Awarded: June 3, 2013
	Keel laid: October 7, 2019
	Launched: June 4, 2021
	Commissioned: October 7, 2023
	Builder: Northrop Grumman Ship Systems' Ingalls Operations, Pascagoula, Miss.
	Propulsion system: four General Electric LM 2500 gas turbine engines
	Propellers: two
	Length: 509.5 feet (155.3 meters)
	Beam: 67 feet (20.4 meters)
	Draft: 30.5 feet (9.3 meters)
	Displacement: approx. 9,500 tons full load
	Speed: 32 knots
	Aircraft: two MH-60R helicopters
	Armament: one Mk-45 5"/62 caliber lightweight gun; two Mk-41 VLS for Standard missiles, ESSM, Tomahawk ASM/LAM and vertical launch ASROC missiles; one 20mm Phalanx CIWS, two Mk-32 triple torpedo tubes for Mk-50 and Mk-46 torpedoes, two Mk 38 Mod 2 25mm machine gun systems
	Homeport: San Diego, Calif.
	Crew: approx. 380

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Crew List:

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

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About the Ship's Coat of Arms:

Encased in the traditional colors of the United States Marine Corps, gold and scarlet, the background illustrates the battle of Iwo Jima via Marines raising the American flag atop Mount Suribachi. On 20 February, 1945, the 17 year-old Private First Class Jack H. Lucas, serving in the 5th Marine Division (depicted as a PFC Devil Dog on the left-hand side), selflessly dove onto a grenade and simultaneously pulled another under his body, saving three of his fellow Marines. Although severely wounded, he survived, recovered, and was the youngest Marine ever to be awarded the Medal of Honor.

In 1961, wanting to continue to serve his country, he joined the United States Army, proudly serving to the rank of Captain in the 82nd Airborne Division (represented as a paratrooper on the right-hand side), where he survived a double parachute failure during training maneuvers. On the ocean's horizon is a silhouette of the USS IWO JIMA (LHD 7), where Jack H. Lucas' Medal of Honor citation lies within the ship's hull.

Seen in the foreground is the Medal of Honor, with the first in class Flight III ARLEIGH BURKE Destroyer, USS JACK H. LUCAS - DDG 125, front-and-center launching two advanced Standard Missiles.

Representing his faithful service which started at the age of 14, the 5th Marine Division Insignia is located on the lower left while the 82nd Airborne Insignia is located on the lower right of the Medal of Honor.

The Devil Dog, Paratrooper, and USS JACK H. LUCAS - DDG 125, share the traditional Navy haze gray color, tying them all together in order to encapsulate Lucas’ remarkable story. The ship’s motto, boldly displayed in riveted steel: INDESTRUCTIBLE.

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USS JACK H. LUCAS Image Gallery:

The photos below were taken by Michael Jenning and show the JACK H. LUCAS at Naval Base San Diego, Calif., on November 12, 2023. Note that the ship is carrying its coat of arms on the forward stack.

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