Guided-missile destroyers deploy from Naval Station Everett

Published 1:30 am Friday, June 2, 2017

Guided-missile destroyers deploy from Naval Station Everett
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Guided-missile destroyers deploy from Naval Station Everett
The Arleigh Burke-class guided missile destroyer USS Shoup (DDG 86) transits past Mukilteo Lighthouse Park after departing Naval Station Everett on June 1, 2017. Shoup is part of the Nimitz Carrier Strike Group and is deploying on a scheduled deployment to the Western Pacific. (U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 2nd Class Alex Van’tLeven)
A sailor embraces his family before going underway aboard the Arleigh Burke-class guided missile destroyer USS Shoup (DDG 86) on June 1, 2017. Shoup is part of the Nimitz Carrier Strike Group and is departing on a scheduled deployment to the Western Pacific. (U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 2nd Class Alex Van’tLeven)
Cmdr. Ted Wiederholt, commanding officer of the Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyer USS Shoup (DDG 86) address friends and family of the crew on June 1, 2017, before the ship departs Naval Station Everett. Shoup is part of the Nimitz Carrier Strike Group and is departing on a scheduled deployment to the Western Pacific. (U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 2nd Class Alex Van’tLeven)

EVERETT — The guided-missile destroyers USS Kidd and USS Shoup left Naval Station Everett on Thursday on a regularly scheduled deployment.

They were joined by the aircraft carrier USS Nimitz, currently based out of Bremerton, and are expected to join the rest of Carrier Strike Group 11 in San Diego before heading out again. The Navy has not disclosed the next destination.

The expected length of the deployment is about six months, said Naval Station Everett spokeswoman Kristin Ching.

The strike group also includes two more destroyers, a guided-missile cruiser, and several squadrons in Carrier Air Wing 11, all based in San Diego.

The Kidd and Shoup each have a complement of about 325 sailors. The Nimitz, the flagship of the strike group, completed a 20-month maintenance and upgrade process in October 2016. It is scheduled to return to Everett in 2019.