BATH, Maine (AP) — The daughters of the late President Lyndon B. Johnson have joined in celebrating a milestone for a Navy destroyer bearing his name.
Lynda Johnson Robb and Luci Baines Johnson were assisted in using a welder on a plate of steel at the keel-laying ceremony Monday at Maine's Bath Iron Works.
The ceremony harkens to the days of sailing vessels when construction began with a wooden keel upon which the ship is built. In this case, it marked the joining of two massive hull units, the first of several that will comprise the 610-foot destroyer.
The future USS Lyndon B. Johnson is the last of three stealthy destroyers in the Zumwalt class, all built in Bath. They feature a stealthy shape and electric propulsion. Automation has halved the crew size.
