Aboard the Guided-Missile Cruiser Normandy ABOARD THE GUIDED MISSILE CRUISER NORMANDY — The guided missile cruiser Normandy returned to Naval Station Norfolk, Virginia, Dec. 12 Saturday after a 279-day and 70,000 nautical mile circumnavigation of the globe.
Normandy and her crew began their the epic journey on March 9, departing Norfolk as the lead escort of the aircraft carrier Theodore Roosevelt, charged with keeping TR safe from surface and air threats as that ship not only completed a scheduled deployment, but also a scheduled homeport change to San Diego.
"This ship covered a lot of ground during the past nine months and I couldn’t be prouder of these sailors and what they accomplished," said Capt. Scott Robertson, the ship’s commanding officer. "Along the way, we had the opportunity to go places and do things that eEast cCoast ships don’t normally get to to."
The 26-year-old cruiser tied up in Norfolk on Dec. 12, just three days after the ship celebrated 26 years of service in the fleet. But u Until now this most recent trip, the ship had never sailed across the Pacific Ocean — nor had it pulled into Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, and rendered honors to the Arizona memorial.
Those items experiences and more have now been are now checked off the ship’s bucket list, as well as the lists of many of her crew.
Over three quarters of Normandy’s crew had never deployed before the ship departed Norfolk and headed east on March 9 along with the Norfolk-based guided-missile destroyers Forrest Sherman and USS Winston S. Churchill, as well as the Mayport, Florida, guided missile destroyer Farragut (DDG-99) departed from Naval Station Mayport, Fla.
The carrier Roosevelt departed two days after her escorts on March 11 and arrived in her new home port of San Diego on Nov. 23rd. Normandy was the last ship of Carrier Strike Group 12 to return home.
After escorting TR to Hawaii, Normandy headed to Panama where she transited the Panama Canal Dec. 3 and made a final port visit in Mayport before starting the final leg to her Norfolk homeport.
Damage Controlman 2nd Class (SW) Michael Falconer kisses his wife while on the ship's brow on Dec. 12 for the traditional "first kiss."
Photo Credit: Mark D. Faram/Staff
The ship officially moored in Norfolk at 9:23 a.m. and soon, anxious crewmembers gathered on the ship's starboard side as the the brow was put in place to bridge the gap between the ship and and the pier, eliminating the last obstacle for the crew to reunite with their families.
First off the ship for the traditional "first kiss" was Damage Controlman 2nd Class (SW) Michael Falconer who, his seabag on his back and a bouquet of flowers in hand, kissed his wife Kristen, while on the brow, halfway between the ship and the pier, his seabag on his back and a bouquet of flowers in hand.
Next, the couple descended to the the pier where Falconer was reunited with his daughter Violet who was born less than a month before the ship left on the cruise.
"This was an incredible cruise, and an opportunity of a lifetime," Falconer said. "But, today is the moment I’ve been waiting for, since we left., I can’t wait to be back with my wife again and see just how much my daughter has grown."
Mark D. Faram is a former reporter for Navy Times. He was a senior writer covering personnel, cultural and historical issues. A nine-year active duty Navy veteran, Faram served from 1978 to 1987 as a Navy Diver and photographer.
