Are yearlong deployments the Navy’s new normal?

Photo: The Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyer John Finn (DDG 113) sails in the Arabian Sea on June 16, 2026. Photo courtesy of U.S. Navy via DVIDS. Public Domain. Article by Jennifer Hlad. Defense One – October 22, 2026.

When the U.S. Navy destroyer John Finn left home in January, sailors expected to be home in March. Now, after extensions on top of extensions, their families have been told to expect them next March—after a 14-month deployment. The Mustin, another Arleigh Burke-class destroyer, switched homeports this year, leaving San Diego in February and arriving in Yokosuka, Japan, in March. As the sailors stepped off the ship, they were told they needed to be ready to deploy “tomorrow.” The Mustin actually left Japan in April for a deployment that was supposed to end in August. Now its crew has been told they will return in April 2027, the spouse of one of the sailors told Defense One. […]

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Curated by Theresa Wysocki

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