Navy Sends Second Arleigh-Burke Destroyer to Rare Southern Deployment

While sending two Arleigh Burke-class destroyers to the border simultaneously is rare, it has happened before.

A second U.S. Navy destroyer is headed toward the southern border. According to a press release from the service, the USS Spruance will be joining its sister ship USS Gravely on a deployment to the “Gulf of America” (Gulf of Mexico) as part of the Trump administration’s crackdown on immigration and on the southern border. In February, the president issued an executive order (EO) titled “Imposing Duties to Address the Situation at Our Southern Border,” where challenges included “the sustained influx of illegal aliens and illicit opioids and other drugs” were outlined. The U.S. Northern Command announced that the incoming destroyers will be deployed alongside Coast Guard assets to address those challenges described in the EO. The dual deployment of USS Spruance and USS Gravely has surprised many, since such a concentration of naval assets for border security operations has not occurred in the past.

While sending two Arleigh Burke-class destroyers to the border simultaneously is rare, previous administrations have utilized these warships for related mission sets before. In 2022, USS Momsen was directed to the Gulf of Oman to intercept millions in illegal drugs alongside a Coast Guard interdiction. Last year, the USS Leyte Gulf guided-missile cruiser was used to intercept a semi-submersible craft loaded with kilos of cocaine in the Atlantic. The fact the USS Spruance and USS Gravely will partner with law enforcement agencies to carry out Trump’s border initiatives is in itself not an anomaly.

Introducing USS Spruance

As an Arleigh Burke-class destroyer, the USS Spruance was designed as a multi-mission warship capable of conducting anti-aircraft warfare, anti-submarine warfare, and anti-surface warfare. All ships in this class were developed with the Aegis Combat System and the SPY-1D multi-function passive electronically scanned array radar. As an integrated naval weapons system, Aegis is vastly popular and currently is fielded on at least 110 warships across the globe. The Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force, Royal Norwegian Navy, Spanish Navy, and Royal Australian Navy are just some of the nations equipped with this superior naval weapons system.

In terms of power, four General Electric LM 2500 gas turbines support each Arleigh Burke destroyer, capable of producing 100,000 total shaft horsepower and enabling speeds in excess of 30 knots. These destroyers are armed to the teeth, equipped with a range of a Raytheon Tomahawk cruise missile and a combination of anti-ship missiles and land-attack missiles.

USS Spruance was laid down in 2009 and was ultimately christened one year later in Bath, Maine, at Bath Iron Works after completing a costly $1 billion construction. Notably, Spruance was the first ship in its class to be upgraded with the Gigabit Ethernet Data Multiplex System. Its maiden deployment to the Western Pacific Ocean was followed by a brief stint in Sri Lanka. Subsequently, Spruance joined Carrier Strike Group 3 in 2022 in the Pacific. This fall, Spruance made headlines when it was bombarded with Houthi-launched projectiles in the Red Sea. Spruance proved her worth by intercepting every drone and missile launched in her direction.

About the Author: Maya Carlin

Maya Carlin, National Security Writer with The National Interest, is an analyst with the Center for Security Policy and a former Anna Sobol Levy Fellow at IDC Herzliya in Israel. She has by-lines in many publications, including The National Interest, Jerusalem Post, and Times of Israel. You can follow her on Twitter: @MayaCarlin. Carlin has over 1,000 articles published over the last several years on various defense issues.

Image: Wikimedia Commons.