BATH — U.S. Sens. Susan Collins and Angus King announced Saturday that Bath Iron Works will build the Navy’s first Flight III Arleigh Burke-class destroyer, a DDG-51.

The new guided missile destroyer will “incorporate new technologies, including a powerful new radar called the SPY-6,” according to a news release from the U.S. Senate. The radar will enhance the ability to detect air and surface targets and missile threats.

“The hardworking men and women of Bath Iron Works deliver the highest quality ships for our nation’s sailors,” Collins and King said in a joint statement. “There is no workforce in the world better positioned to build the first of the Navy’s upgraded destroyers, which will help ensure that the strength of our Navy’s capabilities remain unrivaled.” 

“With countless threats across the globe,” the senators added, “the value and importance of our naval assets to our security and stability have never been greater.”

King obtained the authorization for the ship last year as a member of the Senate Armed Services Committee and Collins secured the $1 billion in funding. The Navy subsequently listed the remaining $433 million needed to fully procure this ship, according to the release.