The crew of the destroyer Ross had a bit of fun Tuesday, shooting off an interceptor missile from its forward launcher and achieving the first ballistic missile target intercept in a European exercise. “That was bright!” one watch-stander can be be heard saying in the background, over laughs and high-fives. The SM-3 Block IA launch took place in the North Atlantic, aimed at a Terrier Orion ballistic missile target — a 2,800-lb two-stage rocket — launched from Great Britain’s Hebrides range, located off the northwest coast of Scotland. The SM-3 was intercepted in space, according to a 6th Fleet release. The launch was…
Browsing: 6th Fleet
Exercise Joint Warrior hit its halfway point over the weekend, and shows no sign of letting up. Plenty of challenges, from mine countermeasures to subhunting and amphibious assault, still lay ahead for the NATO and allied ships in one of Europe’s largest military exercises, led by the United Kingdom. And they’re not the only ones paying attention. News reports say a number of Russian ships have taken position on the periphery, and military inspectors from Moscow are keeping close watch. And with good reason: NATO nations have touted this as a show of strength to deter Russian aggression, and there has been plenty of…
The Big Stick hit the shores of merry old England last week. The presence of the 100,000-ton carrier Theodore Roosevelt, on an eight-month deployment, created huge Buzz in Great Britain when it anchored off Portsmouth March 22 for a five-day port visit along with the destroyer Winston S. Churchill. The British papers went bananas, spectators lined the shores to catch a glimpse of the 1,100-foot-long warship and businesses hung American flags to welcome 5,000 sailors to the land of America’s one-time imperial overlords. Portsmouth’s local paper, The News, reported that the Roosevelt “stunned onlookers on Southsea seafront as she dwarfed…
When the destroyer Winston S. Churchill returned home to Norfolk, Va., on Thursday, families cheered and reunited after nine months apart. For Construction Mechanic 2nd Class Jeff Reyes, seeing his family wasn’t just a reunion — it was a first meeting. During the deployment to Europe and the Middle East, the destroyer covered more than 56,000 nautical miles and conducted more than 1,000 hours of flight operations, according to a Navy news release. The destroyer also responded to an emergency at sea, saving the life of a civilian mariner in August. One crew member on the civilian motor vessel Belde…
On May 7, 1970, the Beatles released their last single: “The Long and Winding Road.” Last week, the amphibious transport dock Ponce, launched 13 days after the song and commissioned in July 1971, completed its own long journey, coming home for the last time after four decades of service. Those years were filled with significant events. Ponce helped evacuate nearly 300 mostly U.S. and British Westerners from Lebanon during the 1976 civil war, and supported 6th Fleet air strikes on pro-Syrian militia positions in defense of U.S. Marines ashore. It supported military disaster relief in Florida following 1992’s devastating Hurricane…
The Norfolk-based destroyer Mason finally made it home today, bringing up the rear of the Enterprise Carrier Strike Group, most of which arrived at home ports or bases July 15. One of the happy sailors was Electrician’s Mate 1st Class Eugene Andal, who was selected to debark and receive the traditional first kiss from his wife and kids: The Strike Group left Norfolk Jan. 13 to support theater security cooperation and maritime security cooperation efforts during a deployment to the U.S. 5th and 6th Fleet areas of responsibility that covered nearly 60,000 miles.
