NORFOLK, Va. — Cryptologic Technician (Technical) 2nd Class Gavriel Junquera, winner of the traditional first kiss, reunites with his spouse on the pier as the world's largest aircraft carrier, USS Gerald R. Ford (CVN 78), returns to Naval Station Norfolk, May 16, 2026, following a historic 11-month deployment to U.S. 2nd, 4th, 5th, and 6th Fleets as part of the Gerald R. Ford Carrier Strike Group. Before returning to Norfolk after 326 days, the Gerald R. Ford crew conducted 23 replenishments-at-sea, sailed over 57,713 nautical miles, and safely transferred 14 million gallons of fuel. Embarked Carrier Air Wing 8 logged more than 5,760 flight hours and 12,200 flight launches. (U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 1st Class Sophie Pinkham)
| Date Taken: | 05.16.2026 |
| Date Posted: | 05.16.2026 17:56 |
| Photo ID: | 9688514 |
| VIRIN: | 260516-N-EE423-1380 |
| Resolution: | 4969x3660 |
| Size: | 1.73 MB |
| Location: | US |
| Web Views: | 3 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
This work, The World's Largest Aircraft Carrier Returns form Historic 11-Month Deployment [Image 5 of 5], by PO1 Sophie Pinkham, identified by DVIDS, must comply with the restrictions shown on https://www.dvidshub.net/about/copyright.