USS Port Royal Returns to Homeport
PEARL HARBOR — The Ticonderoga-class guided missile cruiser USS Port Royal (CG 73) returned to its homeport of Pearl Harbor after successfully completing a scheduled deployment to the U.S. 5th and 7th fleet areas of operations.
This deployment took Port Royal through 40,000 miles of water, 9 strait transits and port visits to Guam, Sasebo, Okinawa, Singapore, Bahrain, and Kuwait.
The Port Royal team conducted a variety of at sea operations with the Abraham Lincoln Strike Group as the Ballistic Missile Defense Commander. Port Royal also conducted combined maritime operations with the Kuwait Naval Force and hosted Vice Adm. Charles Cooper, commander, U.S. 5th Fleet, along with multiple high-ranking members of the Kuwait Military Forces to boost international relations.
Port Royal also stood Sector Air Defense Commander, Ballistic Missile Defense Commander, and Air and Missile Defense Commander duties while in the Arabian Gulf.
The Port Royal crew’s hard work continued on their personal and professional development with 47 Sailors joining the ranks of Enlisted Surface Warfare Specialist qualified personnel and three Officers qualifying in Surface Warfare.
Even with the crew’s hard work, they managed to find downtime with a swim call and two community relations events, multiple steel beach picnics and Morale, Welfare, and Recreation (MWR) events. Port Royal Sailors worked tirelessly to ensure they remained at the forefront of our naval fighting force throughout this deployment, cementing her legacy as a ship that truly had “The Will to Win.”
Port Royal is a Ticonderoga-class guided missile cruiser. U.S. Navy guided-missile cruisers provide multi-mission offensive and defensive capabilities, and can operate independently, or as part of carrier battle groups, surface action groups, amphibious ready groups and underway replenishment groups.
MIDPAC is responsible for the manning, training and maintenance of all surface ships homeported at JBPHH, Hawaii, and exercises operational control of assigned forces. MIDPAC manages the heightened readiness for sustained combat operations at sea.