{"id":45823,"date":"2024-05-23T09:02:00","date_gmt":"2024-05-23T09:02:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/navytimes\/uncategorized\/2024\/05\/23\/fair-winds-and-following-seas-uss-leyte-gulf\/"},"modified":"2026-08-08T19:51:39","modified_gmt":"2026-08-08T19:51:39","slug":"fair-winds-and-following-seas-uss-leyte-gulf","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/navytimes\/news\/your-navy\/2024\/05\/23\/fair-winds-and-following-seas-uss-leyte-gulf\/","title":{"rendered":"Fair winds and following seas, USS Leyte Gulf"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

The Navy cruiser Leyte Gulf completed its final deployment late last week.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The 36-year-old ship left Naval Station Norfolk, Virginia, on Jan. 28 for a cruise in the waters of U.S. 4th Fleet and returned to Norfolk on Friday, according to a Navy release.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Named after the legendary World War II Battle of Leyte Gulf in the Philippine Sea in 1944, Leyte Gulf was built in 1985 and commissioned in 1987.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThis ship is full of history,\u201d Capt. Nathan Diaz, Leyte Gulf\u2019s commanding officer, said in a statement. \u201cEach period brings its own far-off journeys, along with generations of sailors who have manned the helm.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cOur last deployment was full of sailors who made their own mark on the story of this great warship.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Leyte Gulf\u2019s final deployment comes as the Navy and Congress continue to disagree as to the pace of retirement for the aging cruiser fleet.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Navy leaders want to retire the ships as soon as possible in the next few years to free up money for new ships and maintenance, even as billions have been sunk into cruiser modernization efforts in the past decade, with mixed results.<\/p>\n\n\n\t