Nimitz News

Happy Sunday, everyone. As you’d expect, we’ve been really busy and it’s hard to believe that it’s been over a week since we took in the lines and got underway. Your Sailors are doing a fantastic job. This crew always amazes me with their dedication, talent, and professionalism. Last Saturday’s departure was picture perfect--great weather, a crowd of supporters, a fantastic ship and great crew on their way to do the Nation’s bidding. It had to have been quite a sight as NIMITZ glided out of San Diego Bay past Point Loma with the crew manning the rail. As impressive as it was, departures for deployment are always bittersweet. There is tremendous professional pride and sense of accomplishment in having the ship and crew fully prepared and ready to perform our mission, but it is very difficult to say good-bye to loved ones for the months that will follow. I know it is very difficult for those remaining at home, too. Maybe even more so. The first week or two of transition is typically the hardest whether on the ship or at home. Staying busy in our new routine helps out a lot.

Once out in the Southern California operating areas, we spent the first couple days flying the air wing aboard and conducting carrier landing refresher training. We also did training in several other areas to dust off some skills and ensure we are performing at peak efficiency. Everything went well and soon we headed west toward Hawaii where we’ll spend a few more days doing sustainment training in the Hawaiian operating areas.

We had a treat this week when we celebrated the 30th anniversary of the commissioning of USS NIMITZ. It’s hard to believe this fine ship is 30 years old. Supply Department prepared a special meal and we celebrated by honoring the longest serving NIMITZ Sailors and two crewmembers from Kerrville, Texas which is near Fleet Admiral Chester Nimitz’s hometown of Fredericksburg. We also aired a TV special about the ship’s history, a short biography of Admiral Nimitz, and the 1981 movie filmed aboard USS NIMITZ, “The Final Countdown.” As the lead ship of the class, USS NIMITZ has proved herself on 12 combat deployments and, since her reactor refueling overhaul, she is like a brand new ship with 20 years of service life remaining.

I hope your first week of deployment was a good one. Your contributions are vital to this team. We can’t do our jobs well out here if we are worried about how things are going at home. By taking care of the homefront, you make our success possible. Don’t forget about the support organizations in San Diego. Our command Ombudsmen can be reached at (619) 890-3469 or ussnimitzombudsman@yahoo.com. The family support group is named TEAM NIMITZ and you can contact them at TeamNimitz@yahoo.com. If you need advice or want to get together with other family members who are dealing with similar circumstances, especially if this is your first deployment, please get in touch with one of these groups. There is a lot of experience to draw on and you don’t have to figure it all out by yourself.

Thanks again for your support for your Sailors in this terrific crew.

Warm regards and very respectfully,

CAPT Ted Branch
Commanding Officer
USS NIMITZ (CVN 68)