Crew officially boards USS John Finn DDG 113

About 300 crew members began their lives today aboard an Ingalls built guided missile: the John Finn DDG 113. News 25 was at the shipyard today as the Navy sailors officially moved on to the ship.
An exciting day for hundreds of Navy sailors as they officially move on board the John Finn DDG 113, an Arleigh Burke class guided missile destroyer built at Ingalls in Pascagoula. “It’s a big day for us. We’re actually going to become a real ship sort of, kind of. Very excited to actually be on board and actually start working.”
The ship was delivered to the U.S. Navy on December 7th last year on the 75th anniversary of the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor and is named after John Finn. Finn was the first Medal of Honor recipient of World War II.
Ship Program Manager Freddie O’Brien got a bit emotional, saying the ship bears the name of a well deserving brave man. “When the Japanese attacked Pearl Harbor, he retrieved a 50 caliber machine gun, put it on the training stand, and manned a single man defense, was wounded seven times. He lived to the ripe old age of 90-something. He died in 2010.”
After two years of preparing for this day, crew members and Commander Michael Waggner tells News 25 it’s been a long time coming. “Once we’ve gone through basic phase, intermediate phase, and advance phase training, the ship will deploy anywhere in the world and can conduct a multitude of operations from humanitarian assists to combat operations if required,” said Commander Waggner.
About 300 crew members will now begin their lives aboard the John Finn until it sets sail for its home port of San Diego in June. Gunner Mate First Class William Ferenczy said, “it’s exciting because it’s my first destroyer. A lot of new systems to learn and I was thankful to be on the Gulf Coast once again, so that was nice. I’ve also never been stationed in San Diego so I’m looking forward to it.”