The Gerald R. Ford Carrier Strike Group entered the U.S. Southern Command area of responsibility in the Western Atlantic Ocean, officials with the U.S. Navy said on Nov. 13.
The strike group includes the world’s largest aircraft carrier, the U.S.S. Gerald R. Ford (CVN 78). Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth directed the strike group to the area to support President Donald Trump’s directive to dismantle drug rings, or Transnational Criminal Organizations and narco-terrorists.
“The enhanced U.S. force presence in the USSOUTHCOM AOR will bolster U.S. capacity to detect, monitor, and disrupt illicit actors and activities that compromise the safety and prosperity of the United States homeland and our security in the Western Hemisphere,” Chief Pentagon Spokesperson Sean Parnell said. “These forces will enhance and augment existing capabilities to disrupt narcotics trafficking and degrade and dismantle Transnational Criminal Organizations.”
The aircraft carriers carries more than 4,000 sailors and dozens of tactical aircraft, providing combatant commanders and American civilian leaders the opportunity to “project power through sustained operations at sea.” The first-in-class carrier is capable of catapult launches and recovery of fixed-wing aircraft on its flight deck, officials said.
The Navy said the carrier strike group will augment forces already in the area, including the Iwo Jima Amphibious Ready Group, under a Joint Task Force created to defeat and dismantle what the Trump administration said is criminal networks exploiting American borders.
“Through unwavering commitment and the precise use of our forces, we stand ready to combat the transnational threats that seek to destabilize our region,” Adm. Alvin Holsey, Commander, SOUTHCOM, said. “The USS Gerald R. Ford Carrier Strike Group’s deployment represents a critical step in reinforcing our resolve to protect the security of the Western Hemisphere and the safety of the American homeland.”
The strike group also includes nine embarked squadrons of Carrier Air Wing Eight, Destroyer Squadron Two’s Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyers USS Bainbridge (DDG 96) and USS Mahan (DDG 72), and the integrated air and missile defense command ship U.S.S. Winston S. Churchill (DDG 81).