The USS Gerald R. Ford, the world’s largest aircraft carrier, returned to Naval Station Norfolk on Saturday after 326 days at sea, the longest deployment for a U.S. aircraft carrier since the Vietnam War. The Ford’s mission, which began in June, included supporting the U.S. war with Iran and participating in the January operation that captured former Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro.
Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth was at the pier to greet the Ford and its escorts, the destroyers USS Bainbridge and USS Mahan. Speaking aboard the Bainbridge, Hegseth told the crew, “You didn’t just accomplish a mission, you made history.” He added, “You made a nation proud.” In recognition of their combat service, the Ford and its accompanying ships were awarded the Presidential Unit Citation, the highest unit award for performance in action.
The Ford departed Norfolk in June, heading first to the Mediterranean Sea. In October, it was rerouted to the Caribbean as part of the largest U.S. naval buildup in the region in generations, leading to the capture of Maduro. The carrier then transited to the Middle East, where it participated in the opening days of the Iran war from the Mediterranean before moving through the Suez Canal to the Red Sea in early March. During the deployment, a fire broke out in one of the carrier’s laundry spaces, leaving hundreds of sailors without sleeping quarters and requiring lengthy repairs on the Greek island of Crete.
The 326 days at sea broke the post-Vietnam record previously held by the USS Nimitz, which spent 341 days away from home in 2020–2021, though that total included extended isolation periods ashore to prevent the spread of COVID-19. The Navy’s only longer aircraft carrier deployments occurred in the 1960s and 1970s: the USS Midway at 332 days in 1973 and the USS Coral Sea at 329 days in 1965. The deployment’s length has raised questions about the toll on sailors and the increasing strain on the ship and its equipment beyond the fire.