The flagship of the U.S. 7th Fleet sailed into Wellington Harbour

The flagship of the U.S. 7th Fleet, USS Blue Ridge sailed into Wellington Harbour this morning as part of a scheduled Pacific patrol. Since leaving her home port of Yokosuka in Japan in April, the amphibious command ship USS Blue Ridge has had port visits in Cairns, Noumea and Suva.

The visit to Wellington, the first time for many of the crew to New Zealand, will mean some liberty and community engagement for the 850 sailors on board.

For the Commander of Seventh Fleet, Vice Admiral Fred Kacher, and his command officers, it will be an opportunity to renew acquaintances with our Chief of Navy, Rear Admiral Garin Golding, other senior NZ Defence Force leaders, parliamentarians and the media.

Both our navy’s share a commitment to regional maritime security, peace and prosperity. So we welcome the arrival of USS Blue Ridge and her crew to Wellington and we also welcome home four of our sailors who have been on the ship for the past six weeks enhancing their mariner skills.

The ship is named after the mountain range in the Appalachian Highlands in Eastern United States immortalised in a well-known song. Interestingly the ship, commissioned in 1970, has taken over the honour of being the longest serving active duty ship in the US fleet from USS Denver.