The flagship vessel of Carrier Strike Group 1 docked at its homeport of San Diego on Thursday after a nine-month deployment, according to a Navy release.
The Nimitz-class aircraft carrier Carl Vinson deployed to the Middle East and Western Pacific on Nov. 18, 2024, to conduct freedom-of-navigation operations, multinational exercises and combat operations, including Operation Rough Rider, which targeted Iran-backed Houthi rebels with airstrikes.
“Our Sailors’ dedication and hard work over nearly nine months was vital to sustained operations, including combat, protecting our American values of freedom, prosperity and security on the high seas,” said Rear Adm. Amy Bauernschmidt, commander of Carrier Strike Group 1.
The Carl Vinson Carrier Strike Group joined the French Navy and Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force in February to take part in the Exercise Pacific Steller 2025 and bolster security in the Indo-Pacific region.
During the exercise, the Carl Vinson and its embarked Carrier Air Wing 2 conducted air-integration training with the U.S. Air Force and Republic of Korea Air Force, utilizing fifth generation F-35 aircraft.
The strike group eventually joined the U.S. Central Command area of operations in March, providing support to Operation Rough Rider, a large-scale military campaign that began March 15, launching air and naval strikes against Iran-backed Houthi Rebels.
As part of the mission, the aircraft carrier Harry S. Truman fired over 1.1 million pounds of ordnance and delivered the largest carrier-launched airstrike in history against the Houthis, who’d terrorized commercial shipping in the Red Sea, Gulf of Aden and the Bab al-Mandeb Strait.
During its deployment, the Carl Vinson strike group’s sailors sailed over 275,000 nautical miles, completing more than 10,000 sorties and 23,000 flight hours in the process.
Carrier Strike Group 1 includes the flagship Carl Vinson, the embarked staff of Destroyer Squadron 1, Carrier Air Wing 2, the Ticonderoga-class guided-missile cruiser Princeton and the Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyers Sterett and William P. Lawrence.
Carrier Air Wing 2 comprises nine squadrons that fly the F-35C Lightning II, F/A-18E/F Super Hornets, EA-18G Growler, E-2D Advanced Hawkeye, CMV-22 Osprey and MH-60R/S Sea Hawks.
Riley Ceder is a reporter at Military Times, where he covers breaking news, criminal justice, investigations, and cyber. He previously worked as an investigative practicum student at The Washington Post, where he contributed to the Abused by the Badge investigation.
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