On Jan. 4, it was announced that former Coronado SEAL Team 1 leader Robert Kerrey would have the Navy’s newest Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyer named after him.
It will be the USS Robert Kerrey (DDG 146).
“This will be the first Navy vessel named in his honor,” said Carlos Del Toro, secretary of the Navy. “And it is most appropriate we do so, for his actions in Vietnam and his continued service to this country well beyond his Naval service.”
Kerrey, 81, is a former U.S. senator, governor of Nebraska and naval officer who was awarded the Congressional Medal of Honor for his heroic acts during the Vietnam War.
He deployed to Vietnam as a platoon officer in March 1969, leading his team on a mission on an island in the bay of Nha Trang against Viet Cong political leaders. Their mission involved scaling a 350-foot cliff before arriving on the outskirts of the enemy camp when a grenade exploded, severely injuring Kerrey’s right leg.
Kerrey had flown backward onto jagged rocks and was immobilized due to his wounds. However, he continued to direct his team and lead them in securing the enemy camp, even planning an extraction site for a helicopter to evacuate them.
He eventually lost his lower leg but was the first Navy SEAL to receive the Medal of Honor.
“My sincere thanks to President Biden, Secretary of the Navy Del Toro, and the United States Navy that gave me the opportunity to serve my country for three of the best years of my life,” said Kerrey. “I am very grateful for this recognition.”
The Arleigh Burke-class destroyers are highly capable, multi-mission ships that conduct a wide range of operations, from peacetime presence to national security.
