Jan. 8 (UPI) -- The USS Abraham Lincoln has entered the last leg of a lengthy deployment with a port visit at Pearl Harbor.
"I am proud of all of the hard work and dedication shown by the entire crew throughout the deployment," Capt. Walter Slaughter, commanding officer of Abraham Lincoln, said. "Hawaii is a strategic, historic location that presents a well-deserved opportunity for rest and relaxation, and for the crew to honor the sacrifices of those who have gone before us during the attack on Pearl Harbor."
The aircraft carrier deployed in April with a strike group surface ships that have since returned to Norfolk, and remained in the Persian Gulf as tensions flared up in the region, rushing into the North Arabian Sea in May and remaining there until a November transit through the Strait of Hormuz.
The Abraham Lincoln Carrier Strike Group also conducted flight operations in the South China Sea and participated in exercises with allied navies in the U.S. 5th and 6th Fleets.
Related
Before it departs Hawaii, family and friends will embark on a tiger cruise -- a Navy tradition allowing civilians aboard for a short embarkment to see what their loved ones' jobs entail.
The Lincoln has been deployed since April 1, or 283 days, nearing a record for length of carrier deployment post-Vietnam. That record is also held by the Lincoln, which was stationed in the Middle East from July 2002 to May 2003, or 290 days.The all-time record length of deployment is held by the USS America, which was deployed for 292 days from June 1972 to March 1973.
