Super Typhoon "Chaba" Turns, Kitty Hawk Returns to Sea after Brief Port Visit
 

http://www.news.navy.mil/search/disp...story_id=14862

Super Typhoon Chaba Turns, Kitty Hawk Returns to Sea after Brief Port
Visit
Story Number: NNS040823-07
Release Date: 8/23/2004 3:25:00 PM

By Journalist 1st Class Michael D. Mitchell, USS Kitty Hawk Public
Affairs

USS KITTY HAWK, At Sea (NNS) -- USS Kitty Hawk (CV 63) returned to sea
in the western Pacific Ocean Aug. 21, following an abbreviated port
visit to Guam.

Having arrived Aug. 19, Kitty Hawk had initially been scheduled to
stay in Guam for several days, but was forced to depart the island
early due to the approach of Super Typhoon Chaba (Super Typhoon 19W),
which took a turn directly toward the island.

Kitty Hawk’s commanding officer, Capt. Thomas A. Parker, initiated an
emergency recall of personnel late morning Aug. 21. All Sailors and
airmen assigned to Kitty Hawk and the embarked Carrier Air Wing (CVW)
5 were ordered to return to the ship and make preparations for
immediate departure.

“Kitty Hawk and CVW-5 sincerely appreciate the assistance given by the
people of Guam in responding to the unforeseen recall of our
personnel,” said Parker. “We look forward to the next opportunity to
visit the beautiful island, and enjoy some of the island’s great
hospitality.”

With assistance from Guam’s media and business communities, Kitty Hawk
successfully completed the recall with only a small percentage of
personnel unable to return before the ship’s departure. These
personnel will be flown to Kitty Hawk using the ship’s Carrier Onboard
Delivery aircraft, the C2-A Greyhound.

The successful completion of the recall and departure also validated
Kitty Hawk’s role in America’s Forward Deployed Naval Forces, or FDNF.
The FDNF traditionally operates at the highest of operational tempos,
maintained in a constant state of readiness, allowing ships and
squadrons to get under way with minimal notice and complete any
mission delivered by the National Command Authority.

Kitty Hawk continues its primary mission of maintaining stability
throughout the western Pacific theater, serving as an effective
deterrent to military aggression and, if necessary, providing
immediate military response in the defense of the United States and
its allies.

Kitty Hawk was commissioned April 29, 1961, and is America’s oldest
active war ship. Kitty Hawk is the Navy’s only permanently
forward-deployed aircraft carrier, operating from Yokosuka, Japan.

The Kitty Hawk CSG is the largest carrier strike group and is composed
of Kitty Hawk, CVW-5, the guided-missile cruisers USS Chancellorsville
(CG 62) and USS Cowpens (CG 63), and Destroyer Squadron 15.

For more information on the Kitty Hawk Carrier Strike Group, visit the
Battle Cat’s Navy NewsStand page at www.news.navy.mil/local/cv63.