Nassau Expeditionary Force MED 01 Deployment
LHA-4 Nassau
"First from the Sea" / "Top Gator"
ex-Leyte Gulf
The Nassau ARG left homeport on Nov. 28, 2000. Its deployment was highlighted by extensive operations and exercises throughout the Mediterranean, to include contingency duties as the U.S. 6th Fleet Theater Amphibious Force. With the 22nd Marine Expeditionary Unit/Special Operations Capable (MEU[SOC]) embarked, the ARG/MEU team participated in several international exercises, to include an amphibious exercise with the Spanish navy; live-fire exercises in Capo Teulada, Sardinia; and Exercise Atlas Hinge 2001 in Tunisia. The ARG returned in May of 2001.
The morning of September 11, 2001, found NASSAU at Metro Machine in Norfolk, Va., undergoing a brief yard period. In the wake of the tragedy, NASSAU's then Commanding Officer Capt. Russell Tjepkema, a Brooklyn, N.Y. native, reunited with a high school friend with connections to the New York Fire Department, which had suffered great personnel losses as a result of the terrorist attacks. To honor FDNY, Capt. Tjepkema requested a FDNY flag from a New York firehouse for NASSAU to fly while on station during Operation IRAQI FREEDOM. Not only did NASSAU receive the flag, but a firefighter's helmet showing the scars of 20 years of service and the patch of a fallen fireman were also included. The FDNY gift has a permanent home on board the ship.
Chronology
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May 2001 - Returned to Norfolk
28 Nov 2000 - Deployed
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