TAMPA, Fla. — Tampa will hold a commissioning ceremony as the U.S. Navy's newest and most technologically advanced destroyer joins the active fleet.
The USS Jack H. Lucas (DDG 125), a new version of the Burke-destroyer, will feature an advanced air and missile defense radar system that will help the ship protect aircraft carrier and amphibious assault groups, according to the Navy. Other advancements include upgraded electrical power and cooling systems. The ship will operate out of San Diego after its commissioning.
The ship is named after the World War II hero Jacklyn Harold "Jack" Lucas who was awarded the Medal of Honor when he was only 17 years old, making him both the youngest Marine and the youngest World War II serviceman to receive that honor.
Lucas was credited with saving the lives of three Marines by jumping on two grenades during the Battle of Iwo Jima, one of which exploded severely wounding Lucas.
According to a profile from the World War II Museum, Lucas joined the Marines when he was only 14 by forging his mother's signature. When he was 16, he stowed away aboard a ship headed for Iwo Jima, celebrating his 17th birthday at sea. His near-deadly encounter with the grenades happened five days later in a trench during Lucas' second day in combat, and although the soldiers he saved thought the grenade explosion had killed him, Lucas was ultimately saved by another Marine passing by. It took 26 surgeries to treat his wounds.
According to Lucas' obituary in the Hattiesburg Sun Herald, he also survived a paratrooper training jump during which both of his parachutes failed during the 1960s. He died of cancer in 2008 at the age of 80.
The ceremony commissioning the USS Jack H. Lucas is set for Saturday, Oct. 7, at Port Tampa Bay.