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USS Ronald Reagan Makes Maiden Port Visit in Honor of Veterans' Day

Navy Newsstand

Story Number: NNS031112-02

Release Date: 11/12/2003 8:20:00 AM

By Journalist 2nd Class Margaret A. Peng, Command Information Bureau Detachment

Ft. LAUDERDALE, Fla. (NNS) -- USS Ronald Reagan (CVN 76) celebrated its maiden port visit in honor of Veterans' Day, making its first port of call in Ft. Lauderdale, Fla. The Navy's newest, most modern-Nimitz class aircraft carrier will be in port for a four-day visit from Nov. 11-14.

"It is very fitting that we should be pulling into Port Everglades on Veterans' Day," said Commanding Officer Capt. James A. Symonds. "It is inspiring to me, and I believe it will be to my Sailors. There are so many in the Ft. Lauderdale area who are veterans of all the services -- Coast Guard, Marines, Air Force, Army, Navy and Merchant Marines -- from the World War II and Vietnam eras, who are extremely patriotic and enthusiastic in their support of the U.S. Navy."

During the port visit, South Florida's Navy Leagues and Broward Navy Days will be hosting several events for the ship's crew.

"The South Florida Navy Leagues have supported the Navy in a tremendous fashion for so many years," said Symonds. We are honored to continue the tradition of Navy ships, especially aircraft carriers, coming to Ft. Lauderdale."

Commissioned July 12, the carrier is named after 40th U.S. President Ronald Wilson Reagan. USS Ronald Reagan is the ninth Nimitz-class aircraft carrier and the largest carrier in the world.

Reagan was built by Northrop Grumman Newport News in Newport News, Va., and launched March 4, 2001. The nuclear-powered ship can operate for more than 20 years without refueling and is expected to operate in the fleet for about 50 years. The ship is 1,092 feet long, almost as long as the Empire State Building is tall, and towers 20 stories above the waterline. It has a flight deck which covers 4.5 acres, can carry more than 70 combat aircraft, and can accommodate 6,000 personnel. It has a top speed in excess of 30 knots.

Ronald Reagan's carrier air wing will include the F/A -18 Hornet and F/A-18 E/F Super Hornet strike fighters, the F-14 Tomcat Fighter, the E-2C Hawkeye airborne early warning aircraft, the C-2 Greyhound logistics aircraft, the S-3B Viking anti-submarine aircraft, the EA-6B Prowler electronic warfare aircraft, and the multi-role SH-60F and MH-60 R/S helicopters.