PORT EVERGLADES, FLA. (WSVN) - The U.S. Navy gave a crowd at Port Everglades plenty of pomp and pageantry for the commissioning of its newest destroyer.
A gun salute greeted the unveiling of the USS Paul Ignatius, Saturday morning. The warship was named after the secretary of the Navy under President Lyndon Johnson from 1967 to 1969.
Ignatius, 98, attended the ceremony with his family.
Watch the USS PAUL IGNATIUS come alive at 10Am today https://t.co/mwuAXcOUtc
— Port Everglades (@PortEverglades) July 27, 2019
Current Navy Secretary Richard V. Spencer pointed out what made the occasion particularly unusual.
“It was a real pleasure to see him and his family here today to celebrate something that’s pretty rare, which is someone who’s alive having a ship of the line named after them, but a great Navy day,” said Spencer.
The future warship has a core crew of 310 and will be stationed in Mayport, near Jacksonville.
The USS Paul Ignatius is the sixth warship to be commissioned at Port Everglades.
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