US Navy’s Arleigh Burke-class destroyer Paul Ignatius (DDG 117) completed acceptance trials in the Gulf of Mexico on December 20, the US Navy announced.

The 67th ship in the class returned to Huntington Ingalls Industries’ (HII) Pascagoula shipyard following the two-day test.

During acceptance trials, the ship and its crew performed a series of demonstrations for review by the US Navy’s Board of Inspection and Survey (INSURV). These demonstrations are used by INSURV to validate the quality of construction and compliance with Navy specifications and requirements prior to delivery of the ship to the US Navy.

“The ship performed very well, which is a testament to the preparation and commitment of the Navy-shipbuilder team,” said Capt. Casey Moton, DDG-51 class program manager, Program Executive Office (PEO) Ships. “The ship also previously performed a successful SM-2 shoot during builder’s trials, further demonstrating the readiness of the ship’s Aegis weapon system and ship’s force. These trials put the ship on a solid path towards delivery to the Navy.”

The DDG-51 class ships currently being constructed are Aegis Baseline 9 Integrated Air and Missile Defense destroyers with increased computing power and radar upgrades that improve detection and reaction capabilities against modern air warfare and Ballistic Missile Defense threats. When operational, DDG-117 and her sister ships will serve as integral assets in global maritime security.

The future USS Paul Ignatius was scheduled to be delivered to the navy by June 2018. It is now expected to be delivered early next year.

HII’s Pascagoula shipyard is also currently in production on the future destroyers Delbert D. Black (DDG 119), Frank E. Peterson Jr. (DDG 121), Lenah H. Sutcliffe Higbee (DDG 123) and Jack H. Lucas (DDG 125), the first Flight III ship. HII was recently awarded a contract for the design and construction of six additional DDG-51 class Flight III ships.