The aircraft carrier USS Dwight D. Eisenhower returned to its Virginia homeport after back-to-back deployments of nearly eight months, the Navy announced.

The ship, with about 1,000 sailors and officers aboard, arrived at Naval Station Norfolk, Va., on Sunday, with hundreds of families greeting them.

The ship was deployed in February 2020 and again in February 2021 — for 320 of the last 514 days, excluding training exercises — with the 5th and 6th Fleets.

For many aboard the ship, the arrival was their first time on land since February, according to USNI.

Two destroyers of the carrier strike group, the USS Laboon and the USS Thomas Hudner, returned to their homeports several days earlier, and Carrier Wing 3, the aircraft normally stationed aboard the aircraft carrier, returned last week.

The deployments were largely confined to the North Arabian Sea and the Gulf of Oman, to support the fight against the Islamic State, as a show of force against Iran and later as support for the withdrawal of U.S. troops from Afghanistan.

With the 6th Fleet, the aircraft carrier conducted exercises with the Moroccan navy and air force and participated in the multi-nation Exercise Sea Shield 21, hosted by Romania.

It also participated in drills with the militaries of Israel, Greece, Italy, Turkey and Albania.

Serving with the 5th Fleet, the vessel and the French aircraft carrier Charles de Gaulle conducted dual carrier operations in the Arabian Sea.

The Eisenhower later participated in maritime surface warfare exercises with the navies and air forces of Canada, Egypt, the United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia, as well as the U.S. Coast Guard and U.S. Air Forces Central.

"They were supposed to remain in the Mediterranean and the North Atlantic but they ended up spending most of their deployment in the Middle East," U.S. 2nd Fleet commander Vice Adm. Andrew Lewis said on Saturday.

"Their previous deployment was in the Middle East, too. They've had a couple of port visits but it's not much to write home about," Lewis said.

First-in-class oiler ship, to be named after Rep. John Lewis, christened by Navy
 Washington DC (UPI) Jul 19, 2021 –

The first in a new class of U.S. Navy oiler ships, to be named after civil rights leader John Lewis, was christened at San Diego's NASSCO shipyards.

Actor and activist Alfre Woodward Spencer swung a ceremonial champagne bottle against the hull of the ship on Saturday, as Lewis' family and at least 30 former or current members of Congress watched.

Lewis, a 33-year member of Congress from Georgia, died in 2020. The christening of the ship was conducted on the first anniversary of his death.

"This ship will be a beacon to the world, reminding all who see it of the persistence and courage of John Lewis," House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., said in remarks at the event.

Under a $3 billion contract, the shipyard will build the first six Lewis-class oilers, the first of what the Navy envisions will be a fleet of 20 vessels.

The ships are regarded as replenishment oilers, naval auxiliary ships with fuel tanks and dry cargo holds which supply fuel and other material to ships at sea.

The oilers feature the capacity to carry 162,000 barrels of oil, a dry cargo capacity and the ability to land helicopters. They are designed with double hulls to protect against oil spills.

The Navy determined in 2016 that each ship in the class will be named to honor a non-military American who was prominent in civil rights movements.

The USNS John Lewis was named at that time by Ray Mabus, Navy Secretary during the administration of former president Barack Obama.

Future ships in the class will be named after Harvey Milk, Medgar Evers, Cesar Chavez and Sojourner Truth, among others.