DD–964 · SPRUANCE-CLASS DESTROYER
USS Paul F. Foster
THE LAST SPRUANCE-CLASS HULL AFLOAT
United States Navy · 1976–2003
Explore the ship’s record ↓THE SHIP
A record of service.
USS Paul F. Foster · DD–964
Spruance-class destroyer
- Commissioned
- 21 Feb 1976
- Decommissioned
- 14 Mar 2003
- Length · class baseline
- 563 ft 4 in
- Beam · class baseline
- 55 ft
- Propulsion
- 4 × LM2500 turbines
- Power / shafts
- 80,000 shp / 2
THE NAMESAKE · DD–964
Vice Admiral Paul F. Foster
DD-964 carries the name of the U.S. Navy vice admiral.
ONE HULL REMAINS
A living connection
to all thirty-one.
Paul F. Foster is the last Spruance-class hull afloat. For sailors and families across the class, that makes DD-964 irreplaceable.
After fleet service ended in 2003, the ship began another chapter as the Navy’s Self Defense Test Ship: a remotely operated platform for testing defensive weapons and other naval systems. Extensive modifications changed the ship’s appearance and mission, while the hull continued to serve.
My hope is that this last physical connection to the class can be preserved. A museum or memorial would give future generations somewhere to stand and understand the ships their families knew.
The future deserves attention.
The Navy’s May 2026 shipbuilding plan lists ex-Paul F. Foster in Table A4-3, “Ships Planned for Use in Future Fleet Training Exercises,” whose accompanying text describes SINKEX. That table gives no ship-specific sinking date. Preservation is a hope expressed by this tribute; it is not an approved museum plan.
The Association’s March 2026 statement discusses recycling and SINKEX as potential outcomes and says the ship’s modifications make museum restoration impractical. Its statement is not, by itself, a published Navy decision on a specific museum proposal.
Sources checked September 22, 2026: Navy plan, printed page 48, Table A4-3 · Association statement · NAVSEA test-ship mission
Keeping the shipmates connected
The USS Paul F. Foster Association maintains the ship’s timeline, crew connections and reunion information. Its records trace a career beginning with commissioning on February 21, 1976.
Explore the Association’s ship history →ORIGIN & DESIGN
Built at Pascagoula.
USS Paul F. Foster (DD-964) was built by Ingalls Shipbuilding in Mississippi as part of the Spruance class. Designed around antisubmarine warfare, the ships combined gas-turbine propulsion with a flight deck and hangar for embarked helicopters.
Commissioned U.S. Navy service spanned 1976–2003. The record below describes the launcher configuration; the photographs preserve individual moments at sea and in port.
THE SHIP AT A GLANCE
The VLS generation
Later service included a 61-cell Mk 41 vertical launching system (VLS), replacing the original trainable ASROC launcher forward.
Equipment changed during each ship’s service. This is a later-service summary; photographs may show earlier configurations.
Shared design, individual service
Two 5-inch/54 Mk 45 guns; Harpoon; NATO Sea Sparrow; torpedo tubes; Phalanx close-in defense in later service.
Built by Ingalls Shipbuilding at Pascagoula, Mississippi. The class combined gas-turbine propulsion, helicopter facilities, and an emphasis on antisubmarine warfare.
Explore the class designPHOTOGRAPHS & ARTIFACTS
From the Paul F. Foster collection
THE RECORD · NHHC ARCHIVE
USS Paul F. Foster in the archival record
SPRUCAN is preserving high-resolution source material documenting USS Paul F. Foster and the people, machinery and operations surrounding her. The images below are publication derivatives from preservation files acquired from the Naval History and Heritage Command.
Archival record identifiers are shown while individual dates, locations and descriptions are being verified against source metadata. Preservation masters remain separate from these web copies.
Naval History and Heritage Command archival image.
Naval History and Heritage Command archival image.
Wikipedia: DD-964 service record · Dates cross-checked September 22, 2026.
A note on the decommissioning date
The Navy’s official history gives March 14, 2003 as decommissioning and March 27 as transfer to the test-ship program. Wikipedia currently gives March 27 as decommissioning. This page follows the Navy history. Supporting record
Further reading
NavSource: USS Paul F. Foster · Destroyer History Foundation: class overview · USS Paul F. Foster: ship reference
Service dates follow the linked NavSource ship record. Class dimensions are a design baseline, not a claim that displacement, draft, crew size, or equipment stayed constant. Images combine the SPRUCAN collection with credited archival photographs. Source records appear beneath newly verified images.