Truman deploys in busy carrier week for Navy - Navy News | News from Afghanistan & Iraq - Navy Times

Truman deploys in busy carrier week for Navy

The Harry S. Truman Carrier Strike Group deployed Friday from Norfolk Naval Station, Va., marking the key event in a busy week for the carrier fleet.

The strike group was fully qualified and ready to deploy in October; however, its scheduled deployment was delayed when the carrier Enterprise was seven months late coming out of the yard.

Truman lost nearly one-third of its 2008 Battle “E”-winning crew amid the shuffle. This included five of 19 department heads and the ship’s command master chief. But the crews successfully completed refresher training and certifications in the past four months.

And on Friday, before they sailed away, Rear Adm. Richard O’Hanlon, commander, Naval Air Forces Atlantic, presented crew members with the 2009 Battle “E” Award.

“I am proud of our sailors each and every day,” said Capt. Joe Clarkson, Truman’s commanding officer. “This prestigious award reflects the commitment, dedication, and sustained pursuit of excellence of every sailor on board.”

The six ships, air wing and 6,000 sailors who comprise the strike group are scheduled for a six-month deployment. It’s their first since November 2008.

After 23 months in the yard — seven months more than planned — Enterprise continues to knock out qualifications in preparation for the ship’s forthcoming 21st deployment. Its flight deck became certified May 14 and trapped two E-2 Hawkeyes, the first to land onboard since December 2007, according to a Navy release.

On the West Coast, the carrier John C. Stennis on Monday started a $137 million, six-month planned incremental availability at Puget Sound Naval Shipyard in Bremerton, Wash. The carrier will have extensive work on propulsion and aircraft launch and recovery systems, according to the contract. Radar and communications systems also will be upgraded.

The carrier Ronald Reagan returned to sea for sea trials the following day after six months of upgrades, modernizations and maintenance. The work was done at Naval Air Station North Island, Calif., the carrier’s homeport.

And in the Western Pacific, the forward-deployed George Washington Carrier Strike Group departed Yokosuka, Japan, on Tuesday to conduct equipment testing and carrier landing qualifications to prepare for an upcoming deployment. This comes after hundreds of thousands of man hours repairing and upgrading the carrier during a 121-day selective restricted availability period, according to the Navy.