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4w ago

USS Gerald R. Ford Returns to Norfolk After Record 326-Day Deployment

The marathon cruise now sets up a hard maintenance stretch that could ripple through the Navy’s carrier schedule.

Sailors conduct routine operations on the flight deck of the USS Gerald R. Ford while underway in the Eastern Mediterranean Sea, on March 22, 2026.
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NORFOLK, VIRGINIA - MAY 16: Aircraft carrier USS Gerald R. Ford arrives at Naval Station Norfolk on May 16, 2026 in Norfolk, Virginia. Nearly 4,500 sailors of the Gerald R. Ford Carrier Strike Group returned to Naval Station Norfolk after an 11-month deployment. (Photo by Mike Kropf/Getty Images)
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Overview

  • The Gerald R. Ford strike group, which pulled into Naval Station Norfolk on Saturday, was greeted by Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and families of nearly 4,500 sailors as destroyers USS Bainbridge and USS Mahan returned alongside the carrier.
  • The carrier spent 326 days at sea, breaking the post‑Vietnam record for a U.S. carrier as only USS Midway in 1973 and USS Coral Sea in 1965 stayed out longer.
  • The mission spanned the Mediterranean, Caribbean and Red Sea, backing the January operation that captured Nicolás Maduro and flying combat sorties in the opening phase of the U.S. war with Iran.
  • A March 12 fire in the ship’s laundry spaces displaced about 600 sailors and injured two, leading to repairs in Souda Bay, Crete, before the ship returned to operations.
  • Carrier Air Wing 8 recorded more than 11,800 launches, and analysts now warn the extra‑long tour will strain repair plans, shipyard capacity and efforts to keep experienced sailors.