APRA HARBOR, Guam -- Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyer USS Wayne E. Meyer (DDG 108) moored at Naval Base Guam for its first scheduled port visit of a Western Pacific deployment with the Carl Vinson Carrier Strike Group, Feb. 3.
During this port visit, Wayne E. Meyer is expected to replenish food stores and enjoy liberty out in the community.
“Since leaving San Diego for deployment Jan. 5th, we have been hard at work,” said Cmdr. Vincent A. Fortson, commanding officer of Wayne E. Meyer. “My team has sailed more than 8,000 nautical miles across the Eastern Pacific Ocean, conducted five replenishments-at-sea, performed more than 50 hours of flight operations and completed all tasks assigned by 3rd Fleet.”
The first major evolution Wayne E. Meyer Sailors completed on deployment was an undersea warfare exercise (USWEX) off the coast of Hawaii.
“USWEX was similar to the training scenarios we conducted during COMPTUEX (composite training unit exercise),” said Ensign James Magno, first lieutenant aboard Wayne E. Meyer. “This exercise was centered on our strike group’s ability to conduct undersea warfare. Overall, we performed well as a strike group, and Wayne E. Meyer in particular was recognized for her superior performance throughout the entire exercise.”
Fortson attributes Wayne E. Meyer’s success during this first part of deployment to the dedication and hard work of the team of Sailors aboard.
“Since we left San Diego, my team has done an outstanding job,” Fortson said. “They performed exceptionally well during USWEX, shipboard drills, and all other tasks assigned by Third Fleet.”
This deployment is Wayne E. Meyer’s third deployment to the Western Pacific since being commissioned Oct. 10, 2009, in Philadelphia.
The ship received its name from the late Rear Adm. Wayne E. Meyer, who is regarded as the “Father of Aegis” for his service as the AEGIS weapons system manager and later for his development of the AEGIS shipbuilding project office.
Wayne E. Meyer is on a regularly scheduled Western Pacific deployment with the Carl Vinson Carrier Strike Group as part of the U.S. Pacific Fleet-led initiative to extend the command and control functions of U.S. 3rd Fleet into the Indo-Asia-Pacific region. U.S. Navy aircraft carrier strike groups have patrolled the Indo-Asia-Pacific regularly and routinely for more than 70 years.
U.S. 3rd Fleet leads naval forces in the Pacific and provides the realistic, relevant training necessary for an effective global Navy. Third Fleet constantly coordinates with U.S. 7th Fleet to plan and execute missions based on their complementary strengths to promote ongoing peace, security, and stability throughout the entire Pacific theater of operations.