HONOLULU — Hawaii is losing the Navy destroyer Paul Hamilton after having it stationed in Pearl Harbor for more than 20 years.
The ship is leaving Tuesday and will swap home ports with the destroyer William P. Lawrence in San Diego, which is currently deployed and expected to arrive in Hawaii later this year, KHON-TV reported.
Officials say the move supports efforts to bring the Navy's most advanced vessels and ships with greater capacity to the Indo-Asia-Pacific region.
"The Navy is committed to basing approximately 60 percent of Navy ships and aircraft in the region by 2020," said Rear Adm. John Fuller, commander of Naval Surface Group Middle Pacific and Navy Region Hawaii. "As such, our readiness and the warriors' ethos in Hawaii will continue to be critical to maintaining security in the Indo-Asia-Pacific region."
The Hamilton has been operating out of Pearl Harbor since it was commissioned in 1995. The vessel was named for a secretary of the Navy who served from 1809 to 1812 and played a major role in the creation of naval hospitals, according to KUSI-TV.
The Lawrence is named after a vice admiral who was a prisoner of war in Vietnam and later commander of the Naval Academy.
