Fleet Week is a United States Navy, United States Marine Corps, and United States Coast Guard tradition in which active military ships recently deployed in overseas operations dock in a variety of major cities for one week. Once the ships dock, the crews can enter the city and visit its tourist attractions. At certain hours, the public can take a guided tour of the ships. Often, Fleet Week is accompanied by military demonstrations and air shows such as those provided by the Blue Angels.
Naval Station Norfolk is a United States Navy base in Norfolk, Virginia, that is the headquarters and home port of the U.S. Navy's Fleet Forces Command. The installation occupies about 4 miles (6.4 km) of waterfront space and 11 miles (18 km) of pier and wharf space of the Hampton Roads peninsula known as Sewell's Point. It is the world's largest naval station, with the largest concentration of U.S. Navy forces through 75 ships alongside 14 piers and with 134 aircraft and 11 aircraft hangars at the adjacently operated Chambers Field. Port Services controls more than 3,100 ships' movements annually as they arrive and depart their berths.
The names of commissioned ships of the United States Navy all start with USS, for United States Ship. Non-commissioned, primarily civilian-crewed vessels of the U.S. Navy under the Military Sealift Command have names that begin with USNS, standing for United States Naval Ship. A letter-based hull classification symbol is used to designate a vessel's type. The names of ships are selected by the Secretary of the Navy. The names are those of states, cities, towns, important persons, important locations, famous battles, fish, and ideals. Usually, different types of ships have names originated from different types of sources.
United States Fleet Activities Yokosuka or Commander Fleet Activities Yokosuka is a United States Navy base in Yokosuka, Japan. Its mission is to maintain and operate base facilities for the logistic, recreational, administrative support and service of the U.S. Naval Forces Japan, Seventh Fleet and other operating forces assigned in the Western Pacific. CFAY is the largest strategically important U.S. naval installation in the western Pacific.
The Spokane Trophy is awarded by Commander United States Pacific Fleet on a cycle basis to the surface combatant ship considered to be the most proficient in overall combat systems readiness and warfare operations. The nomination will be submitted by the type commander based on the recommendations of the ISIC. Because the award is to recognize demonstrated ability to fully conduct, on a sustained basis, simultaneous and coordinated air warfare, surface warfare, and undersea warfare operations with all installed equipment, no check-off list of particular criteria is appropriate nor can a ship explicitly work for nomination for the award other than by routinely striving for the highest levels of combat systems training and material excellence. The actual Spokane Trophy is made of 400 ounces of silver and is valued at $4 million.
Exercise Valiant Shield is one of the largest United States military war games held in the Pacific Ocean. Nine Valiant Shield exercises were conducted between 2006 and 2022. According to the Navy, Valiant Shield focuses on cooperation between military branches and on the detection, tracking, and engagement of units at sea, in the air, and on land in response to a wide range of missions.
United States ship naming conventions for the U.S. Navy were established by congressional action at least as early as 1862. Title 13, section 1531, of the U.S. Code, enacted in that year, reads, in part,
The vessels of the Navy shall be named by the Secretary of the Navy under direction of the President according to the following rule: Sailing-vessels of the first class shall be named after the States of the Union, those of the second class after the rivers, those of the third class after the principal cities and towns and those of the fourth class as the President may direct.
Commander, Naval Surface Force, Atlantic (COMNAVSURFLANT) is a post within the United States Fleet Forces Command. As Naval Surface Force Atlantic, it is a military formation, and the organization is often known as SURFLANT. Its headquarters are at Naval Station Norfolk in Norfolk, Virginia. The current commander is Rear Admiral Brendan R. McLane. COMNAVSURFLANT supervises all surface ships based on the Eastern United States and Gulf Coast of the United States, as well as ships forwarded deployed to Naval Station Rota, Spain.
Helicopter Maritime Strike Squadron Seven Seven (HSM-77) "Saberhawks" is a United States Navy helicopter squadron based at Naval Air Facility, Atsugi, Japan. HSM-77 is attached to Carrier Air Wing Five and deploys aboard USS Ronald Reagan and air capable ships attached to Carrier Strike Group Five (CSG-5). The squadron was established as Helicopter Antisubmarine Squadron (Light) Forty Seven (HSL-47) on 25 September 1987 and was redesignated HSM-77 on 2 Apr 2009.
Samuel Perez Jr. is a retired rear admiral in the United States Navy.
Carrier Strike Group 10, is a U.S. Navy carrier strike group. As of August 2022, CSG-10 consists of USS George H.W. Bush (CVN-77), the strike group's current flagship, with Carrier Air Wing Seven embarked on board, as well as the Ticonderoga-class cruiserLeyte Gulf, and four ships of Destroyer Squadron 26.
The United States Navy sent their naval forces in the Red Sea and Persian Gulf including six Aircraft Carriers to take part in Operation Desert Storm, including others that arrived before or after the war started and ended.
In 1989, the United States Navy was on the verge of massive cuts to military spending cuts including ship and aircraft procurement. These forces were expected to fight the Soviet Union, Warsaw Pact and other potential adversaries in case of a war breaking out. At this time, the USS Kitty Hawk (CV-63) of the Pacific Fleet was out of commission for Service Life Extension Program (SLEP) modernization leaving the 3rd Fleet with less carriers.
