| Submit your comments on this article |
| Iraq |
| Nimitz Battle Group Ordered toPersian Gulf |
| 2003-02-28 |
| The six-ship Nimitz battle group and 8,000 sailors will depart Monday to join the mounting U.S. presence in the Persian Gulf, Navy officials said Thursday. Means two of the three carrier homeported at North Island will be ordered to sea... they're not screwing around The San Diego-based ships Nimitz, a nuclear-powered aircraft carrier with a 5,500-member crew and 70 aircraft; the cruiser Princeton; and the destroyer Fitzgerald will sail out of the bay starting at 9 a.m. The Chosin, a cruiser from Pearl Harbor, Hawaii; the frigate Rodney M. Davis from Everett, Wash.; and the ammunition ship Bridge from Bremerton, Wash., will join the group in the Pacific. Usually there's a sub attached as well The Nimitz group is leaving several weeks early for a scheduled six-month deployment to join the buildup for a possible war with Iraq. The flotilla will steam to the Arabian Sea, a trip that will take at least 30 days, not including any port calls. Probably more as a relief to the ships that have been there long term Three San Diego-based air squadrons from North Island Naval Air Station will accompany the ships. Sea Control Squadron 29, an S-3B Viking unit; Helicopter Anti-Submarine Squadron 6, flying HH-60H Sea Hawks; and a detachment from Fleet Logistics Support Squadron 30, a C-2A Greyhound unit, will depart with the battle group. |
| Posted by:Frank G |
| #7 Guys, adding Nimitz to the order of battle would be way overkill (and probably way late) for Operation Squash Saddam. It's possible that it's intended as a relief, but my point was that it might just sort of happen by somewhere else -- the Korean peninsula, for example -- on its way to the Arabian Sea. What else might be up here? |
| Posted by: jrosevear 2003-03-01 05:51:22 |
| #6 Chuck, you have reminded me of another saying, in Sam Houston's famous last question before the battle. "Where did all of these landscapers come from?" Or possibly Custers last "Is there a Casino near Little Big Horn?" |
| Posted by: Bobbing4Kittens 2003-03-01 00:02:08 |
| #5 The DeGauule is in Toulon recovering from the last strenuous exercise with the Yanks in the Med. |
| Posted by: Alaska Paul 2003-02-28 17:38:06 |
| #4 Is one available to tow the DeGaulle out if France changes it's mind? Oh, wait. That'll never happen. Sorry I even mentioned it... |
| Posted by: tu3031 2003-02-28 15:34:03 |
| #3 USS Nimitz=four and a half acres of soverign United States territory. As Victor Davis Hanson described them: "Our aircraft carriers are this nation's phalanxes, at once frightening weapons and symbols of American freedom. . . . And we have twelve of these colossuses — $5 billion, 80,000-90,000-ton monsters, each home to a crew of 5,000. Their flight decks cover 4.5 acres, and the 70 (and more) planes on each wield more destructive power than do most countries." Good luck, good hunting, and get home safe. |
| Posted by: Mike 2003-02-28 12:08:37 |
| #2 Yeah. Too many carriers out and about. It's like looking out your window and seeing a bunch of cops. You wonder what they're up to. |
| Posted by: Chuck 2003-02-28 12:00:01 |
| #1 Anyone think they may be heading to the Gulf via the Sea of Japan? |
| Posted by: jrosevear 2003-02-28 11:48:07 |