Retired Sen. Carl Levin of Michigan is going to witness a milestone in construction of the warship that'll bear his name.
Levin, who served as chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee, is attending a keel-laying ceremony Friday at Navy shipbuilder Bath Iron Works for the future USS Carl Levin. Also attending are Navy Secretary Richard Spencer and all four members of Maine's congressional delegation.
The keel-laying ceremony harkens back to the days of sailing vessels when construction began with a keel upon which the ship is built.
Modern warships aren't built that way, so the ceremony marks a milestone in steel fabrication. The 9,500-ton destroyers in the Arleigh Burke class can easily top 30 knots while simultaneously waging war with enemy ships, submarines, missiles and aircraft.