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ABOARD USS RONALD REAGAN (NNS) -- USS Ronald Reagan (CVN 76), Destroyer Squadron (DESRON) 7 and Carrier Air Wing (CVW) 14 concluded military operations as part of Carrier Strike Group (CSG) 7 in the U.S. 5th Fleet area of operations (AOO) May 29. The nearly 6,000 Sailors assigned to the Ronald Reagan Carrier Strike Group supported operations Iraqi Freedom and Enduring Freedom, as well as conducted maritime security operations (MSO) in the region. MSO set the conditions for security and stability in the maritime environment, as well as complement the counter-terrorism and security efforts of regional nations. MSO deny international...

Reagan Carrier Strike Group Enters U.S. 5th Fleet Story Number: NNS060219-04 Release Date: 2/19/2006 11:03:00 PM From USS Ronald Reagan Public Affairs ABOARD USS RONALD REAGAN (NNS) -- The Navy’s newest aircraft carrier USS Ronald Reagan (CVN 76), along with embarked Commander, Carrier Strike Group (CCSG) 7 and Carrier Air Wing (CVW) 14 arrived in the U.S. 5th Fleet Area of Operations Feb. 18 as part of a routine rotation of U.S. maritime forces. While in the region, Reagan will support Operations Iraqi Freedom and Enduring Freedom, as well as conduct Maritime Security Operations (MSO). More than 6,000 Sailors are...

MANAMA, Bahrain (NNS) -- England’s Prince Andrew awarded Capt. John Peterson the Honorary Order of the British Empire (OBE) during an investiture ceremony Jan. 25 at the British Embassy in Manama, Bahrain. Peterson, chief of staff for Commander, U.S. Naval Forces Central Command, was given the prestigious award for his leadership of coalition forces, which included a large number of Royal Navy sailors and marines, in the campaign to secure Iraqi oil assets during the onset of Operation Iraqi Freedom in 2003. Prince Andrew, who is the Duke of York, knight commander and aide-de-camp to Queen Elizabeth II, congratulated Peterson...

NAVAL STATION EVERETT, Wash. (NNS) -- The guided-missile frigate USS Ingraham (FFG 61) returned to its homeport of Everett, Wash., after a six-month deployment to the Western Pacific and U.S. 5th Fleet area of operations Jan. 16. Ingraham, commanded by Cmdr. Ricks Polk, departed Everett in July as part of Expeditionary Strike Group (ESG) 1. “Our ‘Warriors’ had a great deployment,” Polk said. “Whether it was training with our coalition partners on maritime security operations (MSO) during Exercise Bright Star, or being a force multiplier in the 5th Fleet area of operations, our ship demonstrated the agility that ESG 1...

The commander of U.S. and allied naval forces in the Middle East says the increased coalition naval presence in the Persian Gulf in recent years has prevented the waterway from being used by drug traffickers and terrorists. Vice-Admiral David Nichols spoke on a video link from his headquarters in Bahrain to reporters at the Pentagon. Admiral Nichols says one of the main missions of the 45 ships under his command inside and just outside the Persian Gulf is to deny access to the area to terrorists. He says the effort appears to be succeeding. "Based on what we have learned...

INDIAN OCEAN (NNS) -- U.S. Navy guided-missile destroyer USS Gonzalez (DDG 66), currently operating as part of Task Force 51 in the U.S. 5th Fleet area of responsibility, helped ward off an attack on motor vessel Tigris June 6 in the Indian Ocean off the coast of Somalia. The guided-missile destroyer received word of the attack via a bridge-to-bridge radio report from Tigris. The crew of the motor vessel, who escaped uninjured, reported they were under attack and being fired upon. “The master [of Tigris] sounded extremely scared and provided Gonzalez his position and requested immediate assistance,” said Cmdr. Jeffrey...

Bahrain expels Iraq diplomat for alleged blast link MANAMA, April 2 (Reuters) - Bahrain on Wednesday expelled an Iraqi diplomat it accused of having links to a blast that occurred near a U.S. Navy base in the capital Manama last week. The official Bahrain News Agency said the foreign ministry asked Iraqi First Secretary Nadim Jawad Ali to leave the kingdom because of his alleged ties to an Iraqi man suspected of carrying out the March 24 blast. There was no immediate comment from the Iraqi embassy. A small cooking gas cylinder exploded near the gateway of the headquarters of...

USS JFK Rescues Iranian Mariners in Arabian Gulf Story Number: NNS040814-01 Release Date: 8/14/2004 1:59:00 PM From Commander, Joint Forces Maritime Component Commander/Commander, U.S. Naval Forces Central Command/Commander, U.S. 5th Fleet Public Affairs ABOARD USS JOHN F. KENNEDY (NNS) -- USS John F. Kennedy (CV 67) rescued six mariners from an Iranian cargo dhow Aug. 14, after learning that the vessel was taking on water. The distress signal was initially received by USS Mobile Bay (CG 53), which was operating with Expeditionary Strike Group (ESG) 3 in the Arabian Gulf. Because the vessel was more than 200 nautical miles away,...

Story Number: NNS040322-10 Release Date: 3/22/2004 3:34:00 PM From Commander, Joint Forces Maritime Component Commander/Commander, U.S. Naval Forces Central Command/Commander, U.S. 5th Fleet Public Affairs MANAMA, Bahrain (NNS) -- USS Yorktown (CG 48) aided in the recovery of two dozen mariners March 22, after their tanker collided with a fishing vessel and caught fire off the coast of Oman. At approximately 7:30 a.m. local time, motor vessel Everton made a bridge-to-bridge distress call indicating they had collided with fishing vessel Chun Ying, resulting in a fire amidships and possibly rupturing Everton’s oil tanks, fueling the fire. Several commercial vessels nearby...

Naval Coastal Warfare Reserve Units Deploy to Persian GulfStory Number: NNS040312-06Release Date: 3/12/2004 9:45:00 AM By Journalist 2nd Class Susan Van Veen, Mobile Public Affairs Team 119NAVAL AIR STATION NORTH ISLAND (NNS) -- More than 350 Sailors and Coast Guardsmen and women making up Reserve units of Naval Coastal Warfare Group (NCWG) 1 left Naval Air Station North Island for the Persian Gulf March 7. The command will be on an eight-month deployment as part of the Operation Iraqi Freedom rotation of forces and in support of the global war on terrorism. “This is my second mobilization, and I...

USS George Washington Joins U.S. 5th FleetStory Number: NNS040217-01Release Date: 2/17/2004 10:26:00 AM From USS George Washington Public AffairsABOARD USS GEORGE WASHINGTON, At Sea (NNS) -- The USS George Washington (CVN 73) Carrier Strike Group navigated through the Suez Canal from the Mediterranean Sea to the Red Sea to join forces with the U.S. 5th Fleet Feb. 16. The transit into 5th Fleet places the GW Carrier Strike Group at the tip of the spear in the global war on terrorism, and on a new level of involvement in Operations Enduring Freedom and Iraqi Freedom. While assigned to 5th...

Chinook Crews Swap in BahrainStory Number: NNS040121-05Release Date: 1/21/2004 5:00:00 PMBy Journalist 1st Class (SW) Dennis J. Herring, Commander, U.S. Naval Forces Central Command/Commander, 5th Fleet Public AffairsMANAMA, Bahrain (NNS) -- Crew members on the first coastal patrol vessel to participate in the Chief of Naval Operations’ sea swap initiative met face-to-face Jan. 8, to pass ownership of the ship to the new crew in Bahrain. Off-going USS Chinook (PC 9) Sailors, who have manned the ship since July 2003, spent the Thursday morning performing various demonstrations at sea with the oncoming crew, USS Tempest (PC 2) Sailors of...

U.S. Navy Seizes Small Boat Carrying $11 Million Worth of Hashish Near Persian Gulf WASHINGTON Jan. 2 — The U.S. Navy has seized another small boat carrying drugs near the Persian Gulf after interrogating smugglers with suspected links to the al-Qaida terrorist network, the military announced Friday. The boat seized on New Year's Day was the fourth drug-smuggling vessel intercepted by Americans in the past two weeks in or near the Persian Gulf. Pentagon officials say they believe all four boats, which were carrying hashish, heroin and methamphetamines, are part of a drug smuggling operation which funnels money to Osama...

Navy forces have detained four al Qaeda suspects as a result of maritime interdiction operations in the U.S. Central Command area or responsibility, Vice Adm. David Nichols said Dec. 19. Nichols, who heads the U.S. Naval Forces Central Command, 5th Fleet, said that within the last two weeks, ships stopped and searched two ships. In one instance, sailors detained one individual; in the other it was three. In one case, the suspected al Qaeda was trying to enter Iraq. In the other, Navy officials do not know where the ship was destined. At least one ship was carrying hashish, said...

Story Number: NNS030829-02 Release Date: 8/29/2003 12:00:00 PM MANAMA, Bahrain (NNS) -- While much of the public's attention remains focused on security and reconstruction operations in Iraq, the U.S. 5th Fleet continues to develop innovative strategies to fight terrorism as part of Operation Enduring Freedom (OEF). International maritime forces recently demonstrated this capability to reach out and touch the terrorist network with Sea Cutlass - a unique operation involving eight ships from five nations, Navy SEALs (SEa, Air, Land) and long-range maritime patrol aircraft. Coordinated by a Royal Navy Commodore on land at 5th Fleet headquarters, and led by...

Nimitz Carrier Strike Group Joins Others Deployed to 5th Fleet Story Number: NNS030407-10 Release Date: 4/7/2003 4:01:00 PM By Journalist Seaman Kristine DeHoux, USS Nimitz Public Affairs USS NIMITZ, At Sea (NNS) -- The USS Nimitz (CVN 68) Carrier Strike Group recently entered the 5th Fleet Area of Responsibility, making it the fourth carrier strike group in the region deployed in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom. The San Diego-based aircraft carrier USS Nimitz (CVN 68) is accompanied by USS Chosin (CG 65), USS Princeton (CG 59), USS Benfold (DDG 65), USS Fitzgerald (DDG 62), USS Rodney M. Davis (FFG 60),...

Investigators were at the scene of an explosion near the US naval support facility in Juffair until early today. A device exploded inside a large refuse bin at around 9.40pm last night, immediately outside a housing compound opposite the Manama Club, about 100 metres from the facility. The blast was heard across Manama, but caused little damage and no-one was injured. Witnesses reported seeing a youth running from the scene and jumping into a car, just before the blast, which brought people running out of nearby buildings, said sources. An Interior Ministry official initially said the blast appeared to have...

MANAMA, Bahrain - An explosion outside the U.S. Navy (news - web sites) 5th Fleet base in Bahrain on Monday night shattered windows at nearby houses but caused no injuries, Bahraini officials said. At the Pentagon (news - web sites), a senior U.S. military official said demonstrators had set off a propane gas tank about one-quarter to one half mile outside the U.S. Navy base. A Bahraini Interior Ministry official said the explosion at 9:45 p.m. local time was caused by a cooking gas canister inside a trash can just outside a small compound housing mostly Navy personnel and their...

Huge explosion heard in vicinity of U.S. Navy 5th Fleet base in Bahrain, officials say. © 2003 The Associated Press