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Ship honors SEAL who received Medal of Honor

The last Arleigh Burke-class destroyer will bear the name of a Navy SEAL awarded the Medal of Honor for his actions in Afghanistan.

The Michael Murphy, DDG 112, honors Lt. Michael P. Murphy, who led a four-man team searching for a key Taliban leader in mountains near Asadabad, Afghanistan. On June 28, 2005, the team came under fire from a much larger enemy force with superior tactical position. According to the Navy, Murphy, although mortally wounded by enemy fire, knowingly left his position of cover to get a clear signal in order to communicate with his headquarters. While being shot at repeatedly, Murphy calmly provided his unit’s location and requested immediate support for his element. He returned to his cover position to continue the fight until finally succumbing to his wounds.

Only one member of the team survived the firefight, which also led to the death of 16 other special operators when their rescue helicopter was shot down.

Murphy’s fallen teammates were each awarded the Navy Cross, and Special Operator 1st Class (SEAL) Marcus Luttrell, the sole survivor, wrote a bestselling book after leaving the service about the action.

On Oct. 22 President Bush presented the Medal of Honor to Murphy’s parents, Maureen and Dan.

Navy Secretary Donald Winter announced the selection of Murphy’s name for DDG 112 at a May 7 ceremony in Lake Ronkonkoma, N.Y.

Murphy’s hometown of Patchogue, N.Y., dedicated a park in to Murphy. Michael P. Murphy Memorial Park contains a black granite wall dedicated to the men lost in Operation Red Wing, with each member’s name inscribed. A black granite stone embedded in the plaza bears the picture of Murphy and his Medal of Honor.

The Michael Murphy will be the 62nd and last Arleigh Burke-class destroyer. Built at General Dynamics Bath Iron Works in Bath, Maine, the ship is expected to join the fleet in 2011.

Murphy was the first of two Navy heroes in the war on terrorism to be awarded the nation’s top military honor. The parents of Master-at-Arms 2nd Class (SEAL) Michael A. Monsoor accepted the posthumous award April 8 at a White House ceremony. Their son was killed Sept. 29, 2006, in action with enemy forces in Ramadi, Iraq, when he threw himself on a grenade to save his fellow SEALs.

Destroyers traditionally bear the names of famous Navy people. The next destroyer scheduled to be named is DDG 1001, the second ship of the DDG 1000 Zumwalt-class of advanced destroyers.