Navy to christen USS Daniel Inouye in Maine ceremony

HONOLULU, Hawaii (HawaiiNewsNow) - The Navy will hold a christening ceremony Saturday for their newest guided missile destroyer: The USS Daniel Inouye.

The destroyer, named after Hawaii’s late U.S. senator, will be homeported in Pearl Harbor.

Inouye served as a U.S. senator for Hawaii for 49 years until his death in 2012.

“The future USS Daniel Inouye will serve for decades as a reminder of Senator Inouye’s service to our nation and his unwavering support of a strong Navy and Marine Corps team,” said Secretary of the Navy Richard V. Spencer, in a news conference.

The ceremony will be held on Saturday in Bath, Maine.

U.S. Sen. Mazie Hirono will deliver the ceremony’s principal address.

Inouye’s wife, Irene Hirano Inouye, will serve as the ship’s sponsor. In Navy tradition, ship sponsors christen the ship by smashing a bottle of sparkling wine across its bow.