The aircraft carrier USS Ronald Reagan departed the U.S. Naval Base Yokosuka in Kanagawa Prefecture on Thursday after a nine-year deployment in Japan.
The airline returns to the United States after a patrol in the Western Pacific. The aircraft carrier USS George Washington will arrive in Japan later this year to take over.
“Japan has been a great host and a second home to the crew,” said Captain Daryle Cardone, Ronald Reagan’s commanding officer, before the aircraft carrier’s departure.
U.S. Ambassador to Japan Rahm Emanuel said Ronald Reagan’s crew members “deserve our sincere appreciation for their selflessness, their service and their sacrifice in keeping the Indo-Pacific safe, secure and stable.”
The George Washington deployed to Yokosuka Base, home of the U.S. Navy’s 7th Fleet, in 2008 and was replaced by the Ronald Reagan in 2015.
