Washington, May 17: The USS Gerald R. Ford, the United States aircraft carrier, has returned home after a lengthy deployment. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth shared emotional photos of the sailors’ return on social media, having been present for the occasion. The carrier had approximately 5,000 crew members on board.
This vessel was sent to the Middle East before the conflict with Iran began and has completed a deployment lasting 326 days, marking the longest for a U.S. aircraft carrier strike group since the Vietnam War, according to the Pentagon. Hegseth was in Norfolk, Virginia, to welcome the world’s largest aircraft carrier back home.
He remarked to the media that the work accomplished by this massive carrier was remarkable and extraordinary.
During its deployment, the Ford participated in U.S. operations in the Caribbean, where American forces acted against alleged drug-trafficking vessels, intercepted sanctioned tankers, and took part in efforts to capture Venezuelan leader Nicolás Maduro. It was then sent to the Middle East to engage in military operations against Iran.
The deployment was not without challenges, including a fire in the laundry area in March and various technical issues.
Typically, such aircraft carriers have shorter deployments, but this mission extended to 11 months. Previously reported issues included malfunctioning toilets, and during the Iran conflict, a fire in the ship’s laundry area took about 30 hours to extinguish.
According to the Pentagon, after departing from Virginia last June, the ship traveled through the Atlantic, reached the Mediterranean, and arrived in Norway. In January, it was sent to the Caribbean for operations related to Venezuela before being deployed in the Middle East during the Iran conflict.
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