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News
NEWS | May 11, 2022

USS Porter departs Rota, Spain to start 11th patrol

By USS Porter Public Affairs

The Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyer USS Porter (DDG 78) departed Naval Station Rota, Spain, May 10, 2022, to begin its 11th Forward-Deployed Naval Forces-Europe patrol in the U.S. Sixth Fleet area of operations.

Porter recently returned from operations in the North Sea and continued on to participate in Task Force Exercise 2022, a certification event off the coast of the United States before returning to port in Rota, Spain for a brief maintenance period.

While in port in Rota, Porter completed Visit, Board, Search and Seizure certification, as well as continuing engineering certifications to ensure material and mission readiness.

During patrol 10, Porter completed a three-week NATO certification event, Fleet Operation Sea Training (FOST), off the coast of Plymouth, England. Through the course of the patrol, the ship and her crew sailed throughout the Mediterranean Sea, Black Sea, Aegean Sea, Tyrrhenian Sea and Atlantic Ocean alongside Allies and partners for exercises and operations.

“Porter and her crew are ready to return to sea to continue our mission,” said Cmdr. Christopher Petro, commanding officer of Porter. “We are excited to once again work alongside our NATO Allies and partners to ensure stability and maritime security throughout the region.”

Through the rest of the 11th patrol, Porter is scheduled to participate in exercises and operations throughout the U.S. Sixth Fleet area of operations.

Four U.S. Navy destroyers, including Porter, are based in Rota, Spain, and assigned to Commander, Task Force 65 in support of NATO’s Integrated Air Missile Defense architecture. These FDNF-E ships have the flexibility to operate throughout the waters of Europe and Africa, from the Cape of Good Hope to the Arctic Circle, demonstrating their mastery of the maritime domain.

U.S. Sixth Fleet, headquartered in Naples, Italy, conducts the full spectrum of joint and naval operations, often in concert with allied and interagency partners, in order to advance U.S. national security interests and security and stability in Europe and Africa.