The aircraft carrier Carl Vinson returned to its home port in San Diego Friday following a four-month deployment.
Carl Vinson left San Diego on Oct. 12 and was accompanied on the cruise by the cruiser Princeton and the destroyer Sterett, which also returned home Friday, according to the Navy.
The carrier operated in the Pacific waters of U.S. 3rd Fleet and U.S. 7th Fleet during its latest deployment, and conducted port calls in South Korea, Singapore, Philippines and Hawaii.
Ships from its Carrier Strike Group 1 also pulled into Australia, Japan, Guam, Saipan and Palau.
Carl Vinson also took part in multiple maritime exercises with allies in the Philippine and South China seas and hosted a variety of foreign dignitaries during port calls.
During its 133 days underway, Carl Vinson’s sailors and the embarked Carrier Air Wing 2 launched more than 6,000 sorties and sailed more than 36,000 nautical miles
“These highly trained sailors showed they are reliable, resilient and ready,” the carrier’s skipper, Capt. Matthew Thomas, said in a Navy release announcing the carrier’s homecoming.
Geoff is the managing editor of Military Times, but he still loves writing stories. He covered Iraq and Afghanistan extensively and was a reporter at the Chicago Tribune. He welcomes any and all kinds of tips at geoffz@militarytimes.com.
