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SAN DIEGO – Ticonderoga-class guided-missile cruiser USS Lake Champlain (CG 57) returned to her homeport of Naval Base San Diego one last time, June 16, following participation in Exercise Northern Edge.
For her final transit into San Diego Harbor, the crew manned the rails in their dress whites to honor the years of service Lake Champlain provided to the Navy. As a final homecoming for the crew, friends and family gathered on the pier for her final return and to welcome their Sailors home.
“After almost four decades of faithful service to the U.S. Navy, it is bittersweet to be part of the final crew bringing Lake Champlain home,” said Lt. Caitlin Bezecny, fire control officer, native of Houston, Texas. “I’m incredibly proud of our crew, and the relationships we’ve been able to build with our partner nations and local communities during this exercise. It wouldn’t have been possible without them.”
After 36 years of dedicated service, the ship’s Commanding Officer reflects on the spirit of Lake Champlain’s crew and the demonstrated commitment to excellence.
“It has been an absolute honor and privilege to serve with such an outstanding crew. Their professionalism and dedication in making Lake Champlain back-to-back Battle Efficiency award winners demonstrates their commitment to excellence and ‘can do’ spirit,” said Capt. Steve Foley, commanding officer, native of Chicago, Illinois. “I couldn’t think of a more perfect ending and send off for this amazing warship!”
Northern Edge is a joint field training exercise in and around Alaska. Thousands of participants from U.S. Air Force, U.S. Navy, U.S. Marine Corps, and U.S. Army, including Reserve and National Guard units, are involved. The exercise is designed to provide high-end, realistic warfighter training, and develop and improve joint force relationships, and enhance combat readiness of participating forces. Northern Edge demonstrates the strong partnership and collaboration between the U.S., U.K., and Australia.
Port visits included Seward and Kodiak in Alaska, Bremerton and Everett in Washington, Victoria, Canada, and Astoria, Oregon. After the final port visit, Lake Champlain made way back to her homeport one last time in preparation to decommission.
For more information about Exercise Northern Edge, visit https://www.pacom.mil/Media/News/News-Article-View/Article/3382068/us-multinational-service-members-ships-aircraft-meet-in-alaska-for-northern-edg/, https://www.dvidshub.net/feature/NorthernEdge, or https://www.dvidshub.net/news/445386/northern-edge-exercise-strengthening-international-cooperation-and-combat-readiness
| Date Taken: | 06.16.2023 |
| Date Posted: | 06.29.2023 12:02 |
| Story ID: | 448290 |
| Location: | SAN DIEGO, CALIFORNIA, US |
| Web Views: | 571 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
This work, USS Lake Champlain Returns to Homeport One Last Time Prior to Decommission, by ENS Mallorie Miller, identified by DVIDS, must comply with the restrictions shown on https://www.dvidshub.net/about/copyright.
