Sailors meet new babies, grab long-awaited hugs after deployment on USS Dwight D Eisenhower wcnc.com - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from wcnc.com Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
USS Dwight D. Eisenhower awarded high Navy honors for excellence during deployment
What s life like aboard the Ike? 13News Now crews got an inside look at how sailors spent the six month deployment Author: Allison Bazzle Updated: 7:00 PM EDT July 20, 2021
NORFOLK, Va. Back-to-back deployments and six months at sea just ended for thousands of sailors on USS Dwight D. Eisenhower.
The crew tackled critical missions during the pandemic and even received a special honor from the Navy for resilience
“When you do a deployment like this potentially two deployments inside of a year this is your story,” said Captain Paul Campagna, Commander of the USS Dwight D. Eisenhower.
This homecoming was extremely special for Petty Officer 2nd Class David Floyd.
“My son is 2 1/2 months old, he was born on May 1,” Floyd said. “So, he is growing like a weed right now.”
Answering the call for duty, the first-time father missed his son’s birth.
“Every single day I can’t help but think about it,” Floyd said.
While many sailors were new to deployment, it was the end of a wonderful ride for Command Master Chief Antonio Perryman.
“I’ve been in just a little bit over 32 years and this is my 10th and final deployment,” Perryman said.
IKE is Back: USS Dwight D. Eisenhower Wraps Up Back-to-Back Deployments
July 18, 2021 8:04 PM
Sailors from USS Dwight D. Eisenhower (CVN-69) man the rails as the carrier pulls into Naval Station Norfolk, Va., on July 18, 2021. USNI News Photo
ABOARD THE AIRCRAFT CARRIER USS DWIGHT D. EISENHOWER – The busiest aircraft carrier on the East Coast is back home after two grueling, back-to-back deployments that kept the ship on station in the Middle East for a total of seven and a half months.
Since USS
Dwight D. Eisenhower (CVN-69) left for its first deployment on Feb. 20, 2020, the ship has been deployed for 320 of the last 514 days – not counting training exercises and restriction of movement periods that have kept sailors away from family and loved ones.