HII-built DDG enters Black Sea

The guided-missile destroyer USS Porter (DDG-78) entered the Black Sea on Aug. 8. It is the sixth American ship to operate in the region in 2019. Porter, one of four destroyers based at Naval Station Rota, Spain, moved across the Bosphorus – a narrow, natural waterway located in northwest Turkey - and into the Black Sea, according to Turkish ship spotters. The DDG began its north-bound transit to the Black Sea on Aug. 8, to enhance regional maritime stability and a show of support for our NATO allies and partners in the region, according to Vice Adm. Lisa M. Franchetti, commander of the U.S. 6th Fleet. It is the first U.S. ship to operate in the Black Sea since the Spearhead-class USNS Yuma (T-EPF-8) left the region in late July after a joint exercise (Sea Breeze 2019) with Ukraine. The four Rota-based destroyers are part of the U.S. phased European adaptive approach to ballistic missile defense that pairs the capabilities of the destroyers with Aegis Ashore BMD stations in Poland and Romania. The U.S. Navy has stepped up its presence in the Mediterranean and the Black Sea(s) since the 2014 invasion of Crimea by Russia. The Navy routinely operates in the Black Sea consistent with international law, as well as with the Montreux Convention. (Source: USNI News 08/08/19) Gulf Coast Note: USS Porter was built at HII-Pascagoula, Miss.; and USNS Yuma was built at Austal USA shipyards in Mobile, Ala. Porter was the 28th destroyer of her class, and 12th ship of its class to be built at Ingalls.