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Paul Hamilton Excels in Valiant Shield 2007

Navy NewsStand

Story Number: NNS070815-04
Release Date: 8/15/2007 8:49:00 AM

By Mass Communication Specialist 2nd Class (SW) Davis Anderson, USS John C. Stennis Public Affairs

USS PAUL HAMILTON, At Sea (NNS) -- USS Paul Hamilton (DDG 60) began participating in Exercise Valiant Shield 2007 in the U.S. 7th Fleet area of responsibility (AOR) Aug. 9.

Valiant Shield 2007 brings together more than 30 ships, 280 aircraft and 20,000 service members from the Navy, Air Force, Marine Corps and Coast Guard in the Guam operating area.

With so many moving parts involved, to include the John C. Stennis, Nimitz and Kitty Hawk Carrier Strike Groups, there are certain challenges, which the participants have to overcome for the exercise to succeed.

“Anytime you have a group of ships and an air wing working together with a carrier, it’s a complex environment,” said Lt. Justin Harts, Paul Hamilton’s operations officer. “With three carriers, you have three times the complexity. You’re talking about trying to integrate three different common operating pictures. It’s a lot to sort out.”

While Paul Hamilton is participating in Valiant Shield 2007, their role is to protect USS John C. Stennis (CVN 74). They do this by conducting anti-submarine warfare exercises.

For Sailors working in the Combat Information Center (CIC) aboard Paul Hamilton, this exercise has provided a great training opportunity and highlighted Paul Hamilton’s ability to operate and integrate with a carrier strike group or combat organization.

“It’s actually been going much smoother than I thought it was going to,” said Harts. “The challenges are as anticipated, but we are more than capable of overcoming them quickly.”

Paul Hamilton has been deployed since January and has gained valuable operational experience working with several different Carrier and Expeditionary Strike Groups.

“We have been operating independently in 7th Fleet AOR for the last seven months,” said Harts. “That has allowed us to work with the Stennis Strike Group, Kitty Hawk Strike Group, the Essex Strike Group, Ronald Reagan Strike Group and again with Stennis.”

He added that although strike groups have the same elements, they don’t all operate in exactly the same manner; there is a learning curve when ships enter a new strike group. The seven months of practice operating independently with the different strike groups has taught the crew how to integrate with three strike groups at one time.

“Paul Hamilton is doing really well,” said executive officer Lt. Cmdr. Mark McCulloch. “We’ve proven throughout deployment that we can join a new strike group and plug in and learn the specific procedures for the strike group and contribute right away.”

At the completion of Valiant Shield 2007 Aug. 14, Paul Hamilton will have fulfilled the mission requirements for their regularly-scheduled 2007 deployment and will sail to her homeport of Pearl Harbor.