The nuclear aircraft carrier USS George Washington (CVN-73) of the United States Navy set sail this Tuesday from its base in Yokosuka, Japan, to resume its patrols in the Pacific Ocean, after a brief operational pause.
The flagship had been scheduled to depart on Monday at 10 a.m., but its departure was postponed to 4 p.m. and ultimately canceled for that day. The George Washington left on Tuesday at 10 a.m., currently being the only U.S. aircraft carrier in operation in the Indo-Pacific region.
During the first stage of this new patrol, the carrier and Carrier Air Wing 5 (CVW-5) will conduct fixed-wing aircraft landing qualification exercises off the coast of the Japanese island of Kyushu. These drills will run until October 5, according to the Iwakuni Municipal Council.
Local Japanese authorities requested that the U.S. Navy reduce the noise impact of the maneuvers and limit takeoffs and landings at the Marine Corps Air Station in Iwakuni (MCAS Iwakuni) to 11 p.m. daily, in response to complaints over noise during a previous training that coincided with a national holiday. Japan’s Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport, and Tourism asked that operations respect, as much as possible, the designated runway operation hours.
The aircraft carrier thus resumes activity after having departed Yokosuka on June 10, conducting operations with CVW-5, the cruiser USS Robert Smalls (CG-62), and the destroyer USS Shoup (DDG-86) as part of the George Washington Carrier Strike Group (CSG). On that deployment, it visited the port of Manila in July and participated in the multinational exercise Talisman Sabre 2025, led by the United States and Australia. During those drills, the George Washington carried out joint dual-carrier operations with the British HMS Prince of Wales (R09) in the Timor Sea, as well as exercises with the amphibious assault ship USS America (LHA-6) and the Japanese helicopter destroyer JS Kaga (DDH-184) in the Philippine Sea.
The deployment of the carrier is part of the U.S. Navy’s forward presence strategy in the Indo-Pacific. The George Washington, which had undergone an extensive refueling and complex overhaul at Newport News Shipbuilding, resumed active operations in 2024 after completing sea trials and exercises in Pacific and Philippine waters.
In parallel, other U.S. naval units also conducted movements in the region. The USS Blue Ridge (LCC-19), flagship of the U.S. 7th Fleet, departed Tuesday from Busan, South Korea, after a port visit for meetings with Republic of Korea Navy (ROKN) officers and local authorities. Additionally, the destroyer USS Benfold (DDG-65) left Yokosuka after ten years of deployed service with the 7th Fleet and will transfer to Everett, Washington, to join the 3rd Fleet.
The USS George Washington (CVN-73), which arrived in Japan in November 2024 after crossing from the U.S. West Coast, is regarded by Tokyo as a key element for regional security. Japan’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs stated: “As the security environment in the region surrounding Japan becomes increasingly severe, maintaining a strong U.S. Navy presence through the forward deployment of the USS George Washington and Carrier Air Wing (CVW-5) is essential for Japan’s security and for the maintenance of regional peace and stability. Japan highly values the role played by the U.S. 7th Fleet in achieving such objectives.”
*Images used for illustrative purposes
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