【By Observer Net, Wang Shipu】According to the US Navy Association website (USNI), on October 21, it was reported that the USS Nimitz aircraft carrier strike group (CSG) passed through the Singapore Strait on Friday. After staying in the Middle East for three months, it passed through the Malacca Strait on October 17 and is now conducting missions in the South China Sea.

This is the last deployment of the USS Nimitz aircraft carrier before its retirement. The carrier has already been deployed for seven months.

Social media of the USS Nimitz aircraft carrier in the South China Sea

The USS Michael Monsoor in September, leaving Yokosuka

At around noon local time on the 17th, ship tracking information websites showed that the USS Nimitz (CVN-68) and the USS Gridley (DDG-101) sailed east through the Singapore Strait. Subsequently, the USS Nimitz was located east of the eastern coast of the Malay Peninsula at around 4 p.m. local time.

It is not yet clear how long the USS Nimitz aircraft carrier strike group will be deployed in the South China Sea. This deployment is somewhat related to the schedule of President Trump. President Trump is expected to visit neighboring Malaysia on October 26 to attend the ASEAN Summit.

The USS Nimitz was deployed to the Western Pacific from San Diego, California on March 26 this year, and this is expected to be the last deployment of the carrier's career. The Nimitz strike group is supported by the USS Gridley (DDG-101), the USS Curtis Wilbur (DDG-54), the USS Wayne E. Meyer (DDG-108), and the USS Lena Sutcliffe Higby (DDG-123).

During its journey to the Western Pacific, the USS Nimitz aircraft carrier strike group met with the Zumwalt-class missile destroyer USS Michael Monsoor (DDG-1001) and conducted joint exercises. This second ship of the Zumwalt class was independently deployed in the direction of China during the absence of the Nimitz in the Western Pacific and returned to California on October 4.

The U.S. Navy's oiler USS John Lewis (T-AO-205) also joined the aircraft carrier strike group. When the aircraft carrier strike group was redeployed to the Middle East, the oiler followed closely to provide supplies.

The USS Nimitz was ordered to go to the Middle East in June to replace the USS Carl Vinson aircraft carrier strike group that was stationed there. The USS Carl Vinson aircraft carrier strike group then ended its eight-month deployment in mid-August and returned to its home port of San Diego, California. Afterwards, the USS Nimitz continued to deal with the tense situation in the Middle East but did not engage in combat like the "Carl Vinson" did.

The USS Nimitz aircraft carrier strike group has been deployed for nearly seven months, and it is still unclear whether the carrier will work overtime in the South China Sea and stand guard for the last time. Currently, the USS Nimitz aircraft carrier strike group will become the only aircraft carrier strike group operating in the Indo-Pacific region.

On October 18, the USS Washington (CVN-73) completed a 20-day aircraft carrier qualification certification and returned to Yokosuka with the 5th Carrier Air Wing. According to previous practices, the USS Washington will go on short rest and then leave port again, officially starting its autumn cruise.

The U.S. Navy's USS Nimitz is scheduled to be officially retired in May 2026, ending its 50-year service career. After this operational deployment ends, the USS Nimitz will change its home port from the western coast's Bremerton Naval Base to the eastern coast's Norfolk Naval Base before April 12, 2026. The ship is planned to be retired in May 2026 and will head to Newport News Shipbuilding to begin the decommissioning process.

This article is an exclusive article of Observer Net. Without permission, it cannot be reprinted.

Original: https://www.toutiao.com/article/7564355057064493619/

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