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Ship named for MoH recipient to be christened

Navy officials will christen the guided-missile destroyer Jason Dunham during a ceremony Saturday in Maine, honoring the Marine corporal and Medal of Honor recipient killed five years ago after saving the lives of his comrades in Iraq.

The ship, designated DDG 109, is an Arleigh Burke class destroyer. Dunham, of Scio, N.Y., is the only Marine to receive the nation’s highest award for combat valor since the start of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. The ceremony will take place at General Dynamics’ Bath Iron Works shipyard in Bath, Maine.

Retired Gen. Michael W. Hagee, the Corps’ former commandant, is scheduled to speak. Dunham’s mother, Debra, will serve as the ship’s sponsor and break a bottle of champagne across its bow, keeping with Navy tradition.

Dunham’s squad from 3rd Battalion, 7th Marines, was on a reconnaissance mission in Karabilah during April 2004 when his commander’s convoy was ambushed. As his Marines approached to offer fire support, an Iraqi jumped from his vehicle and lunged for Dunham. The two fell to the ground, and within moments the insurgent dropped a grenade. Dunham shouted for his squad mates to clear out. He then removed his helmet and used it and his body to smother the blast.

The destroyer and its 276-sailor crew will be able to fight air, surface and subsurface battles simultaneously, according to a news release. Cmdr. M. Scott Sciretta is the ship’s likely commanding officer.

The Dunham is 509 feet long and weighs 9,200 tons. Powered by four gas-turbine engines, it’s expected to exceed speeds of 34 mph, according to the release.

A shard of Dunham’s helmet will be sealed in the mast.