The aircraft carrier USS Theodore Roosevelt returned Monday to its home at Naval Air Station North Island in San Diego, California, after a seven-month deployment with an all-female deck team, including one sailor from Hinesville.
Aviation Boatswain’s Mate Kiera Harvey of Hinesville was one of a team of 35 U.S. sailors joined Feb. 28 to successfully launch more than 35 aircraft aboard USS Theodore Roosevelt.
While female sailors have manned the deck of U.S. aircraft carriers for more than 20 years, this crew may be the first crew controlling movement of aircraft and the waist catapults to be all women.
The flight deck crew facilitates every aspect of launch and landing of aircraft. The USS Theodore Roosevelt left its homeport of San Diego on Oct. 6 and was set to return Monday.