USS Farragut offered tours in honor of America's 250th birthday.
US Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 2nd Class Christine Montgomery ; Talia Lakritz/Business Insider
It's not every day you get up close and personal with a working missile launcher.USS Farragut, an Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyer commissioned in 2006, celebrated America's 250th birthday by participating in the largest maritime celebration in US history and offering a rare look into its wide-ranging armament and capabilities.Arleigh Burke-class destroyers like the Farragut are powerful multimission platforms loaded with advanced sensors, missiles, and guns that can engage enemy forces on land, in the air, and at sea. In 2023, then-Secretary of the Navy Carlos Del Toro called Arleigh Burke-class destroyers "the backbone of the surface fleet and one of the most successful shipbuilding programs in the history of the Navy."USS Farragut has been deployed as part of carrier strike groups protecting aircraft carriers, including USS George H.W. Bush, USS Harry S. Truman, and USS Theodore Roosevelt. In 2024, the Farragut apprehended over $44 million of cocaine as part of counter-narcotics operations in the Caribbean Sea, the US Naval Forces Southern Command reported.I boarded the Farragut when it visited New York City in July for Sail4th 250 to see how it lives up to its motto, "Prepared for Battle."Here are the parts of the ship I was allowed to see.
