Upcoming US Navy Constellation-Class Frigate to Sail as USS Galvez

Navy Secretary Carlos Del Toro, a past Potomac Officers Club event speaker and 2024 Wash100 winner, has announced that the Constellation-class guided missile frigate FFG 67, which went under contract for construction in May, will be named USS Galvez. 

The Navy official announced the future warship’s name during the advanced Fourth of July celebration at the U.S. Embassy in Madrid on Friday, Navy .mil reported.

The FFG 67 shipbuilding contract was announced by the U.S. Navy as part of a $1 billion task order awarded to Fincantieri Marinette Marine that also included work on the FFG 66 frigate. The Navy initially awarded to the Wisconsin-based company the detail and design construction for 10 ships in April 2020.

The ship class is designed as a next-generation small surface combatant vessel, adding an agile, multi-mission capability to the Navy. USS Galvez is coming in as the sixth of the new Constellation-class frigates, which include the future USS Constellation, USS Congress, USS Chesapeake, USS Lafayette and USS Hamilton.

The FFG 67’s name honors Bernardo de Galvez, a Spanish count who supported not only the American Revolutionary War. According to Del Toro, Galvez’s support also “helped secure American independence.”