USS Arthur W. Radford (DD-968)

USS Arthur W. Radford in the Mediterranean Sea, circa 27 November 2002
History
Namesake:	Arthur W. Radford
Ordered:	15 January 1971
Builder:	Ingalls Shipbuilding
Laid down:	31 January 1974
Launched:	1 March 1975
Christened:	5 April 1975
Acquired:	4 April 1977
Commissioned:	16 April 1977
Decommissioned:	18 March 2003
Struck:	6 April 2004
Motto:	Patriotism, Perseverance, and Preparedness
Fate:	Scuttled 10 August 2011 for use in the Del-Jersey-Land Inshore Reef.
General characteristics
Class and type:	Spruance-class destroyer
Displacement:	8,040 (long) tons full load
Length:	529 ft (161 m) waterline; 563 ft (172 m) overall
Beam:	55 ft (16.8 m)
Draft:	29 ft (8.8 m)
Propulsion:	4 × General Electric LM2500 gas turbines, 2 shafts, 80,000 shp (60 MW)
Speed:	32.5 knots (60 km/h)
Range:	6,000 nautical miles (11,000 km; 6,900 mi) at 20 knots (37 km/h; 23 mph) 3,300 nautical miles (6,100 km; 3,800 mi) at 30 knots (56 km/h; 35 mph)
Complement:	19 officers, 315 enlisted
Sensors and processing systems:	AN/SPS-40 air search radar AN/SPG-60 fire control radar AN/SPS-55 surface search radar AN/SPQ-9 gun fire control radar Mk 23 TAS automatic detection and tracking radar AN/SPS-65 Missile fire control radar AN/SQS-53 bow mounted Active sonar AN/SQR-19 TACTAS towed array Passive sonar Naval Tactical Data System
Electronic warfare & decoys:	AN/SLQ-32 Electronic Warfare System AN/SLQ-25 Nixie Torpedo Countermeasures Mark 36 SRBOC Decoy Launching System AN/SLQ-49 Inflatable Decoys
Armament:	2 x 5 in (127 mm) 54 calibre Mark 45 dual purpose guns 2 x 20 mm Phalanx CIWS Mark 15 guns 1 x 8 cell ASROC launcher (removed) 1 x 8 cell NATO Sea Sparrow Mark 29 missile launcher 2 x quadruple Harpoon missile canisters 2 x Mark 32 triple 12.75 in (324 mm) torpedo tubes (Mk 46 torpedoes) 1 x 61 cell Mk 41 VLS launcher for Tomahawk missiles
Aircraft carried:	2 x Sikorsky SH-60 Seahawk LAMPS III helicopters.

USS Arthur W. Radford (DD-968) was a Spruance-class destroyer in the United States Navy. She was named for Admiral Arthur W. Radford USN (1896–1973), the first naval officer to be Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff.

Arthur W. Radford was laid down 31 January 1974 by the Ingalls Shipbuilding Division of Litton Industries at Pascagoula, Mississippi and launched on 1 March 1975, sponsored by Mrs. Arthur Radford, the admiral's widow. Arthur W. Radford was commissioned on 16 April 1977, and decommissioned on 18 March 2003, after serving 26 years. On 10 August 2011, her hull was scuttled off the coast of Delaware, to form part of an artificial reef.

Underway for the East Coast the day she was commissioned, Arthur W. Radford was forced to return to her builder's yard for repairs soon thereafter, but got underway again on 30 April. Touching at Charleston, South Carolina, on 3 and 4 May, the ship proceeded to her home port Norfolk, Virginia, which she reached on 6 May.

Three days later, she steamed for Newport, Rhode Island, to provide support for the Naval Surface Warfare Officer Training Command. While the ship proceeded north, a LAMPS helicopter practice-landed on her helo deck to prepare for the embarkation of a LAMPS III detachment. The helicopter returned to Norfolk later that day 11 May. Mooring at Newport on 13 May, the destroyer remained there until 17 May, when she headed home. Soon after returning to Norfolk, she conducted gunnery exercises and helicopter operations off the Virginia Capes.

The ship headed down the coast on 24 May and reached Port Canaveral, Florida, the following day. After embarking Capt. R. K. Albright, Commander, Destroyer Squadron 22 (DesRon 22) the destroyer got underway on 27 May and, for the next few days, conducted air, surface, and sub-surface surveillance of the surrounding waters while President Jimmy Carter, observed operations on board the attack submarine Los Angeles. The destroyer rendezvoused with the submarine prior to her initial dive and then again when the submarine surfaced. Throughout the operation, she provided support services for local and national press covering the Chief Executive's voyage.