YOKOSUKA NAVAL BASE, Japan – The aircraft carrier USS Ronald Reagan will make Yokosuka its new home port in the summer of 2015, replacing the USS George Washington, Navy officials in Japan announced Wednesday.
Meanwhile, the Norfolk, Va.-based USS Theodore Roosevelt will replace the Ronald Reagan in San Diego, while the George Washington moves to Virginia to complete a multi-year nuclear refueling and overhaul, according to a Commander Naval Forces Japan statement.
The Navy said it would release timelines on the moves at a later date; however, Navy contracting documents call for Huntington Ingalls, the lead contractor handling USS George Washington’s overhaul, to work on advance planning between October 2013 and September 2016.
Carrier Air Wing Five will remain in Japan as part of the USS Ronald Reagan’s complement. This ship rotation also does not necessitate any changes to base facilities in either San Diego or Yokosuka, officials said Wednesday.
Most of the crew of the George Washington will transfer over to USS Reagan, “so there will be no mass movement of families overseas,†CNFJ spokesman Jon Nylander said Wednesday.
The moves are part of the United States’ rebalancing pivot strategy in the Pacific theater, an area that the Obama administration and the Pentagon have deemed their greatest long-term priority.
“The security environment in the Indo-Asia-Pacific requires that the U.S. Navy station the most capable ships forward,†according to the statement. “This posture allows the most rapid response times possible for maritime and joint forces, and brings our most capable ships with the greatest amount of striking power and operational capability to bear in the timeliest manner.â€
http://www.stripes.com/news/navy/navy-realigns-carrier-fleet-ronald-reagan-to-replace-gw-in-japan-1.262054Linkback:
https://tubagbohol.mikeligalig.com/index.php?topic=77557.0