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USS Mason (DDG 87)

USS MASON is the tenth Flight IIA ARLEIGH BURKE - class guided missile destroyer and the third ship in the Navy to bear the name.

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Crew List:

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

• Click here to view the list.

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• Click here to see which USS MASON memorabilia are currently for sale on ebay.

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USS MASON Cruise Books:

• Mediterranean and Arabian Sea Cruise Book 2013-14

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About the Ship's Coat of Arms:

The Shield:

Dark blue and gold are the colors traditionally used by the Navy; red, white and blue are the national colors. The two chevrons commemorate DD 191 and DE 529, the two previous ships named "USS MASON." The opposing lions, which are adapted from the Mason Family Coat-of-Arms, represent the World War II Pacific and Atlantic campaigns. The left facing lion symbolizes the service and sacrifice of Ensign Newton Henry Mason in the Battle of the Coral Sea. The right facing lion symbolizes the crew s courageous actions in the North Atlantic during Convoy NY 119 in the ship bearing Ensign Mason s name. The trident, symbol of sea prowess, symbolizes DDG 87's modern warfare capabilities: The Aegis Weapons System, Theater Ballistic Missile Defense and Cooperative Engagement Capability.

The Crest:

The helm symbolizes a strong defense and the projection of power. The anchor refers to John Young Mason, namesake of DD 191 who was Secretary of the Navy under Presidents John Tyler and James K. Polk. The cross alludes to the Distinguished Flying Cross awarded to Newton Henry Mason. The wreath denotes the many awards, honors and achievements of the previous ships named MASON and the crews who served in them.

The Supporters:

Laurel is emblematic of honor and high achievement of the African American crew of DE 529 and marks their selfless contribution to the eventual desegregation of the Navy. The shamrock is symbolic of their good fortune during arduous operations in the North Atlantic and the warm Irish welcome afforded them on their port visit to Northern Ireland.

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USS MASON's Commanding Officers:

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About the Ship's Name:

USS MASON is named in honor of two previous ships of that name. The first MASON (DD 191) (1920-1941) was named for John Young Mason, born April 18, 1799, in Greene County, Va. Both a political leader and diplomat, he was secretary of the Navy for Presidents John Tyler, 1844 to 1845, and James K. Polk, 1846 to 1849. As minister to France, he joined James Buchanan and Pierre Soul , ministers to Great Britain and Spain respectively, on Oct. 18, 1854, in issuing the famous Ostend Manifesto. This document justified seizing Cuba if Spain would not sell the colony to the United States. Mason died in Paris, France, Oct. 3, 1859.

The second MASON (DE 529) (1944-1945) was named for Ensign Newton Henry Mason, born Dec. 24, 1918, in New York City. He enlisted as a seaman in the Naval Reserve, Nov. 7, 1940 and on Feb. 10, 1941 was appointed an aviation cadet. Assigned to Fighting Squadron 3, he died following aerial combat against Japanese forces during the Battle of the Coral Sea, May 8 and 9, 1942. Mason was posthumously awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross for his skill and courage in battle.

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USS MASON History:

USS MASON, an ARLEIGH BURKE - class Flight IIA destroyer built at Bath Iron Works, laid her keel on January 19, 2000, launched and was christened on June 23, 2001, and commissioned at Port Canaveral on April 12, 2003. After delivery and sailaway from Maine, she completed combat-systems qualifications and workups from Norfolk through late 2003, then began her first deployment cycle. In late 2004, she deployed with a carrier strike group in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom and Operation Enduring Freedom, transiting the Mediterranean and Suez to the Arabian Sea and Persian Gulf. Liberty and logistics included Jebel Ali, United Arab Emirates in early December and Manama, Bahrain, later that month. She returned to Norfolk on April 18, 2005, after roughly six months at sea - an archetypal post-9/11 maiden cruise mixing escort, maritime interception operations, and air-defense screen duties.

On October 3, 2006, MASON got underway again for a seven-month Persian Gulf deployment as part of the wider Global War on Terrorism presence. The ship participated in NEON FALCON in the Gulf and maintained Strait of Hormuz/Arabian Gulf watch patterns before returning in May 2007. On September 12, 2008, she departed with USS THEODORE ROOSEVELT (CVN 71) for a scheduled deployment that spanned the Mediterranean, Red Sea, Arabian Sea, and Gulf. During 2008-2009, the itinerary featured port calls at Mykonos, Nice, Aqaba, Istanbul, Dubai, Bahrain, and Jebel Ali, emblematic of a strike group balancing maritime security with allied engagement around key sea lanes.

As upheaval spread across North Africa in 2011, MASON transited the Suez Canal on March 12, 2011, to support contingency posture during the opening phase of the Libya crisis. The same spring, in the western reaches of the Arabian Sea, her visit-board-search-and-seizure team confronted Somali pirates using a Yemeni fishing vessel as a mother ship. On or about April 11, 2011, the team freed five Yemeni hostages and destroyed weapons and RPG gear - an illustrative episode of the coalition's anti-piracy effort that accompanied sanctions and maritime embargo enforcement elsewhere. After sustainment at home, she deployed again with HARRY S. TRUMAN (CVN 75), departing July 22, 2013, for Fifth Fleet/Sixth Fleet waters and returning on April 18, 2014, a long swing that alternated deterrent presence, escorts, and port calls on either side of the Suez Canal. On November 7, 2015, acting as DESRON 26 flagship off the U.S. East Coast, she completed the first East Coast passing exercise with ships of the People's Liberation Army Navy, a brief but notable confidence-building event amid broader strategic competition.

Assigned to EISENHOWER (CVN 69) Carrier Strike Group, MASON deployed in 2016 to the Red Sea/Bab-el-Mandeb chokepoint as the Yemen conflict spilled into sea-lanes. On October 9, 2016, she detected and engaged two anti-ship cruise missiles fired from Houthi-controlled territory. Her crew launched SM-2 and ESSM interceptors and employed Nulka decoys in what became the first recorded combat firing of VLS-launched SAMs by a U.S. ship in defense against an actual inbound anti-ship missile. On October 12 she again defended against missiles from near Al Hudaydah, with U.S. officials later assessing an intercept at roughly eight nautical miles. The following day, October 13, U.S. forces struck three coastal radar sites supporting the attacks. A third attempted strike on October 15 led to additional defensive fires and decoys by both MASON and USS NITZE (DDG 94) while operating with USS PONCE (AFSB[I]-15) in the vicinity - an intense week that reoriented Red Sea rules of engagement and highlighted how destroyers under carrier or amphibious umbrellas protect maritime commerce at chokepoints. For her 2016 performance across training and combat operations, MASON received the Battenberg Cup (announced May 23, 2017) as the Atlantic Fleet's top ship.

Re-set cycles and Atlantic/Med sorties followed, and in 2019, MASON deployed again with CSG-12. She got underway April 1, 2019, operated across Sixth Fleet/Fifth Fleet, executed repeated Strait of Hormuz escorts during a spike in regional tensions, hosted the CENTCOM commander aboard in the Gulf of Oman on August 17, 2019, and returned to Norfolk on November 5, 2019, with her DESRON counterparts after seven months - by then a seasoned chokepoint escort and air-defense picket. Pandemic protocols shaped training and upkeep through 2020-2021. On August 22, 2022, MASON completed a homeport shift to Naval Station Mayport, Florida, bringing more than 300 sailors and families to northeast Florida ahead of the next deployment cycle.

The destroyer departed Mayport on October 13, 2023, with DWIGHT D. EISENHOWER (CVN 69)'s strike group as the Middle East crisis escalated after the Hamas attacks and Israel's response. Sent first to the eastern Mediterranean and then through the Suez Canal to the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden, MASON combined sea-control with crisis response. On November 26, 2023, she answered a distress call from the tanker CENTRAL PARK during a piracy attempt in the Gulf of Aden. A MASON small-boat team pursued and detained five gunmen who fled the scene. As Houthi forces widened attacks on shipping, MASON shot down a drone in the southern Red Sea on December 6, 2023, responded to the missile-struck tanker STRINDA on December 11, and on December 13 downed another attack drone while answering a distress call from ARDMORE ENCOUNTER, which had fought off an attempted boarding as two anti-ship missiles were launched in its direction. On December 28, 2023, U.S. Central Command reported MASON had shot down an anti-ship missile and a drone - one of multiple intercepts during the winter surge as U.S. and partner forces established Operation Prosperity Guardian to protect commerce. On January 12, 2024, she joined USS GRAVELY (DDG 107) and USS PHILIPPINE SEA (CG 58) in Tomahawk strikes on Houthi targets, and on May 13, 2024, she intercepted an inbound anti-ship missile over the Red Sea, destroying additional drones during the same period. After transiting Gibraltar, she made a restorative port visit to Rota, Spain, arriving June 14, 2024, and returned to Mayport on July 2, 2024, after 263 days deployed across the Red Sea, Gulf of Aden, and Mediterranean. The cruise mixed high-end air-maritime defense, convoy and corridor protection, and direct assistance to merchant ships under attack - an operational snapshot of how a modern destroyer underpins freedom of navigation under sustained missile and drone threat.

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Homeports of USS MASON:

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USS MASON Image Gallery:

The photos below were taken by me and show the MASON at Naval Base Norfolk, Va., on October 29, 2010.

The photos below were taken by me and show the MASON undergoing repairs and modernization as part of the DDG Modernization (DDG MOD) upgrade at BAE Systems Norfolk Ship Repair facility in Norfolk, Va. MASON entered dry-dock TITAN on January 30, 2012 - along with her sistership BULKELEY (DDG 84) - in the first ever tandem dry-docking of two US Navy Aegis guided missile destroyers. The TITAN is the largest floating dry-dock on the East Coast, measuring 950 feet long and 160 feet wide, with a lift capacity of 52,000 tons. The photos were taken on May 6, 2012.

The photos below were taken by me and show the MASON at Amsterdam, Netherlands, on August 7, 2013. The photos show her moored at Vlothaven Quay, from where she got underway shortly after noon and taking the Noordzeekanaal she later headed for the North Sea. The Netherlands were the first stop for MASON after she left Norfolk, Va., on July 22 for a deployment as part of the HARRY S. TRUMAN (CVN 75) Strike Group.

The photo below was taken by Michael Jenning and shows the MASON at Naval Base Norfolk, Va., on May 8, 2014.

The photos below were taken by Michael Jenning and show the MASON at Naval Base Norfolk, Va., on October 23, 2014.

The photos below were taken by Michael Jenning and show the MASON at Naval Base Norfolk, Va., on April 29, 2015.

The photo below was taken by Michael Jenning and shows the MASON at Naval Base Norfolk, Va., on October 6, 2015.

The photos below were taken by Michael Jenning and show the MASON at the Marine Hydraulics Industries (MHI) Ship Repair & Services shipyard in Norfolk, Va., for a Selected Restricted Availability (SRA) on October 4, 2017.

The photos below were taken by Michael Jenning and show the MASON at Naval Base Norfolk, Va., on September 21, 2018.

The photos below were taken by Michael Jenning and show the MASON at Naval Base Norfolk, Va., on December 26, 2021.

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