The Nimitz-class aircraft carrier USS Harry S. Truman (CVN 75) conducted fixed-wing flight operations in the North Aegean Sea March 4-5. Truman, flagship of the Harry S. Truman Carrier Strike Group (CSG), along with the Ticonderoga-class guided-missile cruiser USS San Jacinto (CG 56); Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyers, USS Gonzalez (DDG 66), USS Cole (DDG 67), USS Bainbridge (DDG 96), USS Jason Dunham (DDG 109), USS Mitscher (DDG 57); Norwegian Royal Navy Fridjof Nansen-class frigate HNoMS Fridjtof Nansen (F310); and Italian Navy Bergamini-class guided-missile frigate ITS Carabiniere (F 593) supported NATO enhanced Air Policing missions, bolstering the defense of the NATO Alliance. Truman and embarked Carrier Air Wing (CVW) 1 provide an inherently flexible naval force capable of maneuvering to meet emerging missions, deter potential adversaries, reassure Allies and Partners, and enhance security.
“The Truman and Carrier Air Wing One sailed into the northern Aegean Sea conducting fixed-wing flight operations to support NATO’s enhanced Air Policing mission, demonstrating our ability to operate dynamically throughout the theater. This team performed flawlessly as we continued to send a clear signal of our ironclad commitment to NATO,” said Capt. Gavin Duff, Truman’s commanding officer.
“Conducting enhanced Air Policing from North Aegean waters further illustrates NATO’s continued ability to share and pool existing capabilities. We set out to prove that this dynamic employment of an Aircraft Carrier—in pretty restrictive waters—could be done, and in doing so, we have demonstrated the enduring U.S. commitment to Allies,” said Rear Adm. Curt Renshaw, commander, Carrier Strike Group Eight.
Naval aviators assigned to Carrier Air Wing (CVW) 1’s strike fighter squadrons (VFA) 11, 211, 81, 34 and electronic attack squadron (VAQ) 137 conducted airborne patrols through a series of missions spanning enhanced vigilance, training and NATO enhanced Air Policing (eAP) in direct support of Alliance security. The U.S. Navy aircraft from the Harry S. Truman Carrier Strike Group, flying alongside NATO allied air forces. In addition to Air Policing, the Squadrons flew a series of training missions with the Romanian Air Force fostering relationships and building aerial interoperability between the two nations. The Truman’s aviators were supported by key organizations including U.S. Air Force 52nd and 31st fighter wings. Since arriving in the Mediterranean, CVW-1 integrated with the Romanian detachment from the Borcea Fetesti Airfield Feburary 8-15. Truman’s squadrons of F/A-18E/F Super Hornets, EA-18 Growlers as well as a maintenance crew augmented the collective Alliance defense capability.
USS Harry S. Truman (CVN-75) is the eighth Nimitz-class aircraft carrier of the United States Navy, named after the 33rd President of the United States, Harry S. Truman. Harry S. Truman was launched on 7 September 1996 by Newport News Shipbuilding, Newport News, Virginia, and commissioned on 25 July 1998 with Captain Thomas Otterbein in command. President Bill Clinton was the keynote speaker, and other notable attendees and speakers included Missouri Representative Ike Skelton, Missouri Governor Mel Carnahan, Secretary of Defense William Cohen and Secretary of the Navy John H. Dalton. Harry S. Truman is 1,092 feet (333 m) long, 257 feet (78 m) wide and is as high as a twenty-four-story building, at 244 feet (74 m). The supercarrier can accommodate approximately 90 aircraft and has a flight deck 4.5 acres (1.8 ha) in size, using four elevators that are 3,880 sq ft (360 m2) each to move planes between the flight deck and the hangar bay. With a combat load, HST displaces almost 97,000 tons and can accommodate 6,250 crewmembers.
