Deployment 2007

So, I'm back from deployment. I've listed the majority of the places we stopped, but haven't really listed what we accomplished along the way. We left, of course, the first time, in January, with the John C. Stennis Carrier Strike Group, but come back home after only a couple of days. JCSCSG continued to the Arabian Gulf where they conducted operations for several months. My ship, USS PAUL HAMILTON, joined the Ronald Reagan CSG for about three months conducting operations in the Western Pacific, where we made the multiple stops, including Hong Kong, Mokpo, Wakayama, et al, as well as participating the Exercise Foal Eagle 2007 with the ROK Navy. Eventually, the RRCSG finished her deployment and returned to the mainland, while we joined up with the Kitty Hawk CSG, which is based out of Yokosuka, Japan. We conducted our operations and sailed south off the coast of Australia, where we joined up with the USS ESSEX and conducted Exercise Talisman Saber 2007. We also made our stops in Australia (Townsville and Mackay) and the Vanuatu. Finally, we followed the Kitty Hawk north toward Guam and met up with the Nimitz CSG and the JCSCSG returned from operations and we conducted Exercise Valiant Shield 2007. Upon completion of Valiant Shield (picture top left), we started our way home and arrived pierside in Pearl Harbor last Monday.

Jess and I will post about Kauai shortly.

-Jeff