PoliticsAlaska · September 7, 2026
ted stevens comes home in october
For one day in October, a United States Navy ship named for Ted Stevens will be sitting in Whittier, and then it is gone for good.
Daily Alaska staff · September 7, 2026
The United States Navy will commission the USS Ted Stevens, designated DDG 128, on October 3, 2026, in Whittier, Alaska. It will be the first Navy commissioning held in Alaska since 2013, when the USS Anchorage was commissioned in its namesake city. The ship honors former U.S. Senator Ted Stevens, who represented Alaska in the U.S. Senate from 1968 to 2009, the longest tenure of any Republican in Senate history.
Stevens' widow, Catherine Ann Stevens, and his daughters, Susan Stevens Covich and Lily Stevens Becker, are expected to attend the ceremony. Acting Secretary of the Navy Hung Cao and Vice Adm. Joe Cahill are also expected to be present. Cao said the ship is "ready to answer our Nation's call."
The USS Ted Stevens is a Flight III Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyer. It is equipped with the AN/SPY-6(V)1 Air and Missile Defense Radar and upgraded electrical power and cooling systems.
Before his decades in the Senate, Stevens was a decorated Army Air Corps pilot in the 1940s.
After the commissioning ceremony, the ship will depart for its home port in Norfolk, Virginia. October 3 will be the only day the USS Ted Stevens is in Alaska water, with his family on the dock in Whittier.
Public attendance details for the ceremony had not been announced as of publication.
In this story
Questions people ask
When and where will USS Ted Stevens be commissioned?
In Whittier, Alaska, on October 3, 2026, the first Navy commissioning in Alaska since 2013.
Where will USS Ted Stevens be stationed?
The ship will homeport in Norfolk, Virginia after the ceremony.
Who was Ted Stevens?
A U.S. Senator who represented Alaska from 1968 to 2009, the longest-serving Republican in Senate history, and a decorated Army Air Corps pilot before his Senate career.
When was the last Navy ship commissioned in Alaska?
2013, for the USS Anchorage in Anchorage.
Evidence
Sources
Claims and where they come from
- The USS Ted Stevens (DDG 128) will be commissioned October 3, 2026 in Whittier, Alaska. · alaskasnewssource.com
- It is the first Navy commissioning held in Alaska since the USS Anchorage in 2013. · alaskasnewssource.com
- Ted Stevens served in the U.S. Senate from 1968 to 2009, the longest-serving Republican in Senate history. · alaskasnewssource.com
- The ship will homeport in Norfolk, Virginia after the ceremony. · alaskasnewssource.com
Produced with AI assistance, narrated with Slav Lund's voice clone with his consent, and reviewed by a person before publishing. How we use AI →