dailynewsnblog
The Arleigh Burke-class destroyer is often regarded as the workhorse of the US Navy and is one of the Navy’s most successful programs. Like some aircraft programs in the Air Force, the Navy has attempted to develop replacements for it multiple times, only for those programs to be canceled and for the Navy to fall back on the Arleigh Burke and order more updated Flights of them. This has become an issue as the vessel is increasingly constrained by the limited space, weight, power, and cooling margins of its underlying design.
The Navy plans to purchase a total of 99 Arleigh Burke destroyers, of which ten are under construction, and 77 are in service. The only other destroyer in US Navy service is the large Zumwalt class, of which only three of the initially planned 32 examples have been procured. In 2026, the US Navy is under considerable strain due to being required to sustain wartime deployments and operations with a peacetime force. This has resulted in some Arleigh Burke destroyers being forced to undertake heavy deployments.
5
USS Gonzalez (DDG-66)
154+ days of deployment (counting)
USS Gonzalez (DDG-66) departed Naval Station Norfolk, Virginia on March 16, 2026. As of an update on August 10, USS Gonzalez was the only US destroyer operating in the Red Sea. As of the time of writing, this means her deployment has lasted 154 days, or around five months. Gonzalez is listed here not because she has yet to break any records or complete the usual deployment length, but as a representative of the number of Burkes currently deployed for which the end date is not yet determined.
After departing Norfolk, her first stop was at Naval Weapons Station Yorktown for an ammunition onload before heading out to the Iranian theater of operations. Early deployment centered on the Mediterranean with port calls at Souda Bay (Greece) and Taranto (Italy). Later, she transited the Suez Canal to the Red Sea.
A typical US Navy destroyer is generally planned for 6–7 months, although these have been extended to 8–11 months in recent times. Five months in, no homecoming announcement has been released. One of her latest posts on Facebook (July 17) was a repost of CENTCOM reading, “U.S. Sailors conduct M4 rifle qualification training aboard USS Gonzalez (DDG 66) in the Red Sea. Training like this ensures Sailors are qualified to perform armed watch standing duties when needed.“
Gonzalez is an original Flight I Arleigh Burke destroyer that was laid down in 1994 and commissioned into service in 1996. Gonzalez regularly operates helicopters (typically MH-60R and MH-60S Seahawks) from its flight deck, but as a Flight I vessel, she does not have a permanent helicopter hangar.
4
USS Arleigh Burke (DDG 51)
Approx. 180 days of deployment
USS Arleigh Burke (DDG 51) is notable for being the lead ship of her class. She is a Flight I Burke built by Bath Iron Works. She was laid down in December 1988 and launched in 1989, making her the only ship of her class that can claim to have been launched during the Cold War. She was commissioned into service in 1991.
Her home port is Naval Station Rota in Spain, a base jointly used by the Spanish and US Navies. Rota is located in the Province of Cadiz and is home to the largest US military community in Spain. The US Navy permanently stations a flotilla of five to six Arleigh Burke destroyers at Rota. USS Arleigh Burke has been based there since 2021. These Burkes are noted for being heavily deployed, and USS Arleigh Burke is listed here as a stand-in for the whole flotilla.
On July 20, DVIDS reported that the USS Arleigh Burke returned to Rota after a six-month patrol. The news release added, “NAVSTA Rota is a force multiplier, capable of promptly deploying and supporting combat-ready forces through land, air and sea, enabling warfighters and their families, sustaining the fleet and fostering the U.S. and Spanish partnership.”
While various other Arleigh Burke destroyers participated in Operation Epic Fury by firing Tomahawks (e.g., USS Frank E. Petersen Jr. DDG-121), the USS Arleigh Burke appears to have played a more supporting role in the operation. She seems to have been deployed mostly to the Eastern Mediterranean.
3
USS Pinckney (DDG-91)
257 days of deployment
USS Pinckney (DDG-91) returned to her homeport of San Diego in August 2026 after completing around nine months of deployment. She departed on November 25, 2025, and returned on August 9, 2026. Her deployment saw her operate across the Indo-Pacific in the Third and Seventh Fleets and in the Middle East as part of the Fifth Fleet, where she fired Tomahawk cruise missiles against Iran in Operation Epic Fury.
After that, she took part in the enforcement of the naval blockade of Iranian ports and interdictions. Her deployment saw her steam over 48,000 nautical miles, or more than enough to circumnavigate the world twice (following the equator in a straight line). She also conducted 24 replenishments at sea and supported hundreds of flight hours with her helicopter detachment.
Her embarked helicopter detachment from Helicopter Maritime Strike Squadron (HSM) 37 conducted maritime interdictions on 11 commercial vessels. Pinckney is a Flight IIA destroyer, meaning she is fitted with two hangars designed to accommodate two MH-60R helicopters (as do Flight III destroyers). Flight I/II Burkes have no hangars and can’t routinely carry organic helicopters.
She was deployed to the Arabian Sea in the lead-up to Operation Epic Fury and operated in the Middle East until June 22, when she was redeployed to the Philippine Sea. She remained there until at least July 13. USNI News writes, “Pinckney is the first destroyer to deploy with the Northrop Grumman-built AN/SLQ-32(V)7 Surface Electronic Warfare Improvement Program Block III, or SEWIP Block III.”
2
USS Thomas Hudner (DDG-116)
Almost 270 days of deployment
The USS Thomas Hudner (DDG-116) is notable for having one of the heaviest deployments. The destroyer returned to Mayport, Florida in mid-August 2026 after a deployment lasting almost nine months. The vessel started her deployment in the Caribbean, taking part in supporting SOUTHCOM and Operation Southern Spear, which resulted in the capture of Venezuela’s Nicolás Maduro.
Following that effort, Thomas Hudner was redeployed to the Mediterranean and Red Sea regions, where she took part in extended combat and presence missions, including Operation Epic Fury against Iran. As recently as the end of June, she was reported to be deployed in the Red Sea alongside USS Gonzalez (DDG-66) as part of wider Middle East operations.
US Navy’s Arleigh Burke-class destroyer (per budget documents) | |
|---|---|
Total planned | 99 |
Number in service | Approx. 77 |
Number retired | None |
Number under construction | Approx. 10 |
Entered service | 1991 |
Cmdr. David Cook, commanding officer, USS Thomas Hudner, stated as the ship returned home, “Over the past almost nine months, this crew has demonstrated exceptional resilience and tactical proficiency across three different fleets.” During the deployment, Thomas Hudner took part in the operations of the Fourth, Fifth, and Sixth Fleets.
USS Thomas Hudner is among the Navy’s newer Arleigh Burke destroyers. She is a Flight IIA Technology Insertion vessel commissioned in December 2018. Thomas Hudner was one of the Arleigh Burke-class destroyers that actually conducted offensive strikes against Iran using Tomahawk cruise missiles.
1
USS Mitscher (DDG-57)
327 days of deployment
The USS Mitscher (DDG-57) was one of the most heavily deployed US destroyers in 2026. The vessel returned to Norfolk, Virginia, in June 2026 after an 11-month (327-day) deployment that spanned the US Fifth and Sixth Fleet areas. This was reported as a record deployment for a US Navy destroyer by deployment length. As with other destroyers on this list, USS Mitscher was important to maintaining carrier strike groups.
As the ship returned to port, the US Navy reported, “The warship, assigned to Destroyer Squadron Two, departed Naval Station Norfolk for a regularly scheduled deployment to the U.S. European Command area of responsibility, July 25, 2025. Mitscher conducted their pre-deployment certification as part of the Gerald R. Ford Carrier Strike Group but deployed independently to U.S. 5th and 6th Fleets areas of operations.”
Mitscher was an independent destroyer that integrated with the Gerald R. Ford Carrier Strike Group, the Abraham Lincoln Carrier Strike Group, and the allied British Prince of Wales Strike Group. Cmdr. Stephen Prugh, commanding officer, USS Mitscher, stated at the time, “I’m impressed with the crew’s resilience, perseverance, and grit. I could not be prouder of their accomplishments at sea.”
The USS Mitscher was commissioned in December 1994 and is one of the original Flight I ships. She underwent a major modernization period starting in March 2022 and is expected to remain in service until 2034. USS Mitscher took part in Operation Epic Fury against Iran in 2026. At that time, she was attached to the Fifth Fleet and had a supporting surface-combatant role in Operation Epic Fury, rather than being one of the principal strike platforms.
