Eisenhower carrier leaves for training exercise ahead of deployment

"The USS Dwight D. Eisenhower Strike Group is underway in the Atlantic conducting operations, demonstrating the inherent flexibility of the naval force," Commander Ashley Hockycko, public affairs officer for the U.S. Second Fleet, told UPI in a statement.

"IKECSG is conducting training to integrate all the assets of the strike group, test their ability to carry out maritime operations, and ensure they remain prepared and ready for any tasking," Hockycko said.

The Navy has not released information about where the carrier will ultimately be deployed, but earlier this week Chief of Naval Operations Adm. Mike Gilday said the Navy is likely to continue its carrier presence in U.S. Central Command area of responsibility.

That includes the Middle East, including Egypt in Africa, and Central Asia and parts of South Asia.

The deployment is the second within a year for the vessel, which returned from deployment in August after seven months underway in the 5th and 6th Fleet.

That deployment broke records for consecutive days at sea, and the Eisenhower is the second aircraft carrier to undertake two consecutive deployments in less than a year.

The other is the USS Theodore Roosevelt, which left for deployment at the end of December following a Pacific deployment that was stretched out for months due to a COVID-19 outbreak that sickened one-fifth of its crew.