NORFOLK, Va. — Sailors on board the Norfolk-based USS Harry S. Truman aircraft carrier had a busy eight months on deployment. That includes dealing with some high-profile incidents.
“We didn’t just deploy, we delivered," said USS Harry S. Truman Carrier Strike Group Commander RADM Sean Bailey.
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A clear message from the strike group's commander.
He highlighted some of the work the strike group did while deployed and addressed the issues the Truman itself faced. Most recently, in less than two weeks in May two jets went off the carrier and were lost at sea.
No sailors were killed in any of the incidents.
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“All of those investigations are either in the process of being completed or have been completed and are being routed through endorsing chains," Bailey explained. "The main takeaway is we learned lessons.”
When asked what the deployment was like given everything that happened, Truman sailors News 3 talked with called the deployment exciting but said it was time to come home.
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“We got to see a lot, do a lot of different things, and we were proud to be out there," said sailor Nick Moser.
“Being on the Truman, you always feel like it’s time to come home. I miss my family, I miss being in America," sailor Jesse Kemper said.
The Truman’s captain, Chris Hill, who took over in February when the previous captain was relieved after the ship collided with a cargo ship and was damaged, called the strike group’s sailors’ work eye-watering.
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“I got to evaluate two separate ships and it defeats the notion that there’s an issue with Generation X. These sailors stepped up day in and day out," Hill said.
The commanding officer of the USS Stout, Cmdr. Desmond Walker, said this was his first time in combat but believes the sailors handled it well. The Stout is one of two destroyers part of the Truman Carrier Strike Group.
“When we saw it, it was another day at sea for us and I commend our crew not just for in-moment combat but how they were resilient after that," said Walker.
With Truman back, all Norfolk-based carriers are now at home, though as of June 1 the USS Gerald R. Ford Carrier Strike Group was expected to deploy during the summer.
