Arleigh Burke Class Destroyer (DDG-51) — Asbestos in the Aegis Guided Missile Destroyer

The Arleigh Burke class Aegis guided missile destroyers — DDG-51 and subsequent hulls commissioned beginning in 1991 — are the United States Navy’s primary surface combatants and the most capable destroyers in US history. Built primarily at Bath Iron Works in Maine and Ingalls Shipbuilding in Pascagoula, Mississippi, Arleigh Burke class destroyers use four General Electric LM2500 gas turbine engines in a COGAG arrangement driving two shafts. The Arleigh Burke class incorporates the Aegis combat system with SPY-1D phased array radar, providing simultaneous tracking of hundreds of air targets and theater ballistic missile defense capability. The earliest Arleigh Burke class destroyers — USS Arleigh Burke (DDG-51) commissioned 1991 and the Flight I and Flight II hulls that followed — were built during the early 1990s when asbestos had been largely phased out of new naval construction, but some engineering space construction applications in the earliest hulls may reflect residual use of asbestos-containing materials consistent with the construction specifications in effect during their building.

Early Arleigh Burke Class Engineering Space Construction

The earliest Arleigh Burke class destroyers may incorporate residual asbestos:

• Gas turbine exhaust duct thermal insulation — the LM2500 gas turbine engine exhaust ducting aboard Arleigh Burke class destroyers incorporates high-temperature thermal insulation to protect surrounding ship structure from gas turbine exhaust temperatures. The thermal insulation materials used in the exhaust duct construction of the earliest Arleigh Burke class hulls commissioned in the early 1990s reflect the construction specifications in effect at the time of their building. Engineering ratings working in the engine rooms of early Arleigh Burke class destroyers accumulated background asbestos exposure from any asbestos-containing thermal insulation present in the exhaust system construction
• Reduction gear and propulsion machinery spaces — the reduction gear rooms and propulsion machinery spaces aboard Arleigh Burke class destroyers were constructed using construction materials consistent with the early 1990s construction specifications. The extent of asbestos-containing materials in the earliest Arleigh Burke class machinery space construction reflects the state of naval construction standards at the time of each hull’s building
• Auxiliary machinery and pump room pipe insulation — the hot water systems, fuel oil systems, and mechanical piping throughout Arleigh Burke class auxiliary machinery spaces incorporated pipe insulation materials consistent with the early 1990s construction specifications. Engineering ratings working in Arleigh Burke class auxiliary spaces accumulated background asbestos exposure from any asbestos-containing pipe insulation present in the auxiliary system construction

Hull Interior Construction

Early Arleigh Burke class destroyers incorporated early-1990s hull construction materials:

• Below-decks crew berthing and working space construction — the crew berthing compartments and working spaces within the Arleigh Burke class hull were constructed using early 1990s naval construction materials. Crew members serving aboard the earliest Arleigh Burke class hulls accumulated background asbestos exposure from any residual asbestos-containing materials incorporated in the hull construction

VA Claims for Arleigh Burke Class Veterans

VA presumptive service connection under 38 CFR § 3.309(d) covers asbestos exposure from Navy destroyer service. Crew members who served aboard early Arleigh Burke class guided missile destroyers and have since been diagnosed with mesothelioma, asbestosis, or asbestos-related lung cancer may qualify for VA disability benefits.

Source notes: equipment-manifest entries (where shown) are sourced from public-record BUSHIPS (Bureau of Ships) documentation, NARA archives, and the public asbestos litigation record. Manufacturer attributions link to documented asbestos-product histories on AsbestosIndex.com where available. Nothing on this page constitutes medical or legal advice.