The guided-missile cruiser USS Vicksburg (CG 69) returns to her Mayport, Florida, homeport July 11 following a seven-month deployment with Standing NATO Maritime Group (SNMG) 2.
During the deployment the crew exercised and served with 61 ships and aircraft from 18 nations on three continents and logged 30,000 nautical miles.
Led by Capt. Lyle Hall, the vessel spent the majority of her deployment assigned as the flagship for Rear Adm. Brad Williamson and SNMG 2, with his embarked, multi-national, NATO staff. The group operated in the Mediterranean, Black, North, and Baltic Seas.
From December to June, the ship and the task group provided the Alliance’s primary maritime presence throughout the European operational theater.
Vicksburg participated in 10 passing exercises and three major exercises with NATO allied and partner nations, including Operation Active Endeavor, which helped develop the prowess of Vicksburg Sailors and their interoperability with crews from multiple ships, commands, and nations.
Having concluded her NATO mission, Vicksburg seamlessly turned over flagship duties to the German Navy ship FGS Hamburg, which will continue the SNMG-2 mission.
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Image: US Navy