U.S. Navy carriers conduct sinking exercise and multinational drills

Aircraft from Carrier Air Wing 5 aboard USS George Washington sank the decommissioned ex-USS Juneau during a live-fire sinking exercise in the Western Pacific over the weekend. The ship, an Austin-class amphibious transport dock that served in the Vietnam War and Operation Desert Storm, went down about 40 nautical miles northeast of Guam.

A torpedo fired by the Japanese submarine JS Jingei delivered the final blow after coordinated strikes by air, surface, and subsurface units.

the Atlantic USS Theodore

Roosevelt arrived at Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam on June 23 ahead of the 30th RIMPAC exercise. The biennial drill is the largest to date and will involve 30 partner nations, 31 surface ships, five submarines, 15 national land forces, more than 200 aircraft, and 30,000 personnel around the Hawaiian Islands.

USS Nimitz took part in a fleet formation photo exercise on June 25 as part of the inaugural FLEETEX 250 in the Atlantic. The two-week multinational exercise concluded today and included warships, aircraft, and personnel from the United States and 13 allied countries.

Carrier movements and future operations Nimitz pulled into Mayport, Florida, the next day to disembark family members who participated in a Tiger Cruise. The carrier and several other ships will sail to New York City this week for the seventh International Naval Review 250 scheduled for July 3-8.

A Boeing MQ-25A Stingray demonstrator drone was observed on Nimitz’s flight deck, and the C-2A Greyhound completed its final trap aboard the ship. USS Dwight D. Eisenhower continues carrier qualifications off the East Coast, while USS Carl Vinson began training operations on June 25.

USS Abraham Lincoln and USS George H.W. Bush remain on station in the U.S. Central Command area, conducting flight operations as negotiations continue in the region.