{"id":96151,"date":"2024-01-22T17:52:00","date_gmt":"2024-01-22T18:52:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/adn.monetizemail.com\/?p=96151"},"modified":"2024-01-22T19:30:59","modified_gmt":"2024-01-22T19:30:59","slug":"uss-normandy-returns-home-from-8-month-deployment","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/adn.monetizemail.com\/?p=96151","title":{"rendered":"USS Normandy Returns Home from 8-Month Deployment"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Normandy steamed more 61,000 nautical miles while serving as the air defense commander for the strike group.<\/p>\n

\u201cFrom the North Sea to the Eastern Mediterranean, this deployment has enhanced and reinforced regional stability, as we worked with our allies and partners to uphold our mutual commitment to maritime security,\u201d said Capt. Errol A. Robinson, Normandy\u2019s commanding officer. \u201cOur Sailors expertly executed complex multi-ship maneuvers with our allies and tactically controlled aircraft and the airspace, while maintaining the material readiness of the ship.\u00a0 During my two tours aboard Normandy, as division officer and 23 years later as her commanding officer, I can say that my Sailors\u2019 tireless and exacting performance was in keeping with Normandy\u2019s 34 years of superb service.\u201d<\/p>\n

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Over the course of 262 days, Normandy\u2019s crew conducted over 40 replenishments-at-sea, and manned flight quarters 670 times. Normandy\u2019s embarked air detachment, the \u201cSpartans\u201d of Helicopter Maritime Strike Squadron (HSM) 70, flew 393 sorties, totaling 1,132 hours flown.<\/p>\n

Normandy\u2019s culinary team prepared and served over 388,500 meals, which included over 68,619 lbs. of fresh fruits and vegetables, 4,382 lbs. of steak, 10,520 hot dogs, 3,207 lbs. of bacon, 89,000 individual eggs and 800 lbs. of coffee.<\/p>\n

After departing Naval Station Norfolk on May 2, 2023, the strike group spent a month steaming in the High North before transiting the Strait of Gibraltar on June 15, entering the Mediterranean Sea where the strike group would spend the rest of deployment working with allies and partners to provide maritime stability and security in the region.<\/p>\n

Normandy participated in two named multinational naval exercises while in the Mediterranean: NATO vigilance activity Neptune Strike in July and Sage Wolverine in August. During Neptune Strike, command and control of all participating vessels was transferred to Naval Striking and Support Forces NATO (STRIKFORNATO) to synchronize the U.S. and the NATO Alliance\u2019s planning teams and to improve the Alliance\u2019s ability to provide assurance, deterrence, and collective defense. Sage Wolverine consisted of 10 days of high-end maritime training events and air defense exercises with NATO allies. In concert with U.S. allies over the eight months Normandy was underway, the ship completed 24 air defense exercises, 12 low slow flier exercises, and 7 simulated air defense exercises.<\/p>\n

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Throughout deployment, Normandy\u2019s crew embraced numerous opportunities to strengthen partnerships with allied navies, hosting crew exchanges with the U.K. royal navy Duke-class frigate HMS Kent (F 78), the Italian navy Carlo Bergamini-class frigate ITS Carabiniere (F 593), the Turkish navy Gabya-class frigate TCG G\u00f6k\u00e7eada (F 494), and the first-in-class Hellenic navy frigate HS Elli (F 450). In addition to these crew exchanges, the 2023 deployment saw Normandy steam with frigates of the Croatian, Dutch, French, Norwegian, Polish, Spanish, and Swedish navies, demonstrating a shared commitment to promoting safety and stability in Europe.<\/p>\n

Port visits in the U.S. Sixth Fleet area of operations made Normandy\u2019s Sailors de facto ambassadors, as the ship moored in: Gothenburg, Sweden; Koper, Slovenia; Rijeka, Croatia; Aksaz, T\u00fcrkiye; Bar, Montenegro; and Athens, Greece. Office calls to local navy leadership, and community relations events in nearly every country Normandy visited, bolstered valuable partnerships. In Bar, Montenegro, Normandy hosted Nicole Otallah, the charges d\u2019affaires of the U.S. embassy in Montenegro, at a reception for Montenegrin civil and military leaders held on the ship\u2019s flight deck.<\/p>\n

Following the Oct. 7 Hamas attacks on Israel from the Gaza Strip, Normandy and the strike group were ordered to the Eastern Mediterranean by the secretary of defense to provide a constant and stabilizing presence that would prevent regional escalation of the conflict.<\/p>\n

\u201cFor almost 70% of Normandy\u2019s crew, this was their first deployment,\u201d said Command Master Chief William Palmer. \u201cThat did not deter them from seizing opportunities to excel and gain further expertise in their fields. Normandy\u2019s Sailors are returning home more accomplished and more resilient, and their families should be proud of the work they have done.\u201d<\/p>\n

The GRFCSG is comprised of its flagship and namesake, the Ford-class aircraft carrier USS Gerald R. Ford (CVN 78), Carrier Air Wing Eight (CVW-8), Destroyer Squadron Two (DESRON-2), the Ticonderoga-class guided-missile cruiser USS Normandy (CG-60), and the Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyers USS Ramage (DDG 61), USS McFaul (DDG 74), and USS Thomas Hudner (DDG 116).<\/p>\n

The squadrons of CVW-8 embarked aboard Gerald R. Ford are the \u201cTridents\u201d of Helicopter Sea Combat Squadron (HSC) 9, the \u201cSpartans\u201d of Helicopter Maritime Strike Squadron (HSM) 70, the \u201cBear Aces\u201d of Airborne Command and Control Squadron (VAW) 124, the \u201cRagin\u2019 Bulls\u201d of Strike Fighter Squadron (VFA) 37, the \u201cBlacklions\u201d of VFA-213, the \u201cGolden Warriors\u201d of VFA-87, the \u201cTomcatters\u201d of VFA-31, the \u201cGray Wolves\u201d of Electronic Attack Squadron (VAQ) 142, and the \u201cRawhides\u201d of Fleet Logistics Support Squadron (VRC) 40.<\/p>\n

Headquartered in Naples, Italy, NAVEUR-NAVAF operates U.S. naval forces in the U.S. European Command (USEUCOM) and U.S. Africa Command (USAFRICOM) areas of responsibility. U.S. Sixth Fleet is permanently assigned to NAVEUR-NAVAF, and employs maritime forces through the full spectrum of joint and naval operations.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

#cboxClose { position: absolute; top: 5px; right: 5px; display: block; background: url(\/desktopmodules\/articlecs\/images\/media_popup_close.png) no-repeat top center; width: 40px; height: 40px; text-indent: -9999px; } #cboxClose:hover { background-position: bottom center; } .me-plugin { width: 100%; height: 100%; } Normandy steamed more 61,000 nautical miles while serving as the air defense commander for the strike group. \u201cFrom the North […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":5,"featured_media":96153,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-96151","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/adn.monetizemail.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/96151","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/adn.monetizemail.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/adn.monetizemail.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/adn.monetizemail.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/5"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/adn.monetizemail.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=96151"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/adn.monetizemail.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/96151\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":96154,"href":"https:\/\/adn.monetizemail.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/96151\/revisions\/96154"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/adn.monetizemail.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/96153"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/adn.monetizemail.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=96151"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/adn.monetizemail.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=96151"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/adn.monetizemail.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=96151"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}