Carrier Strike Group Two

Carrier Strike Group Two (CSG-2 or CARSTRKGRU 2) is one of four U.S. Navy carrier strike groups currently assigned to the United States Fleet Forces Command. Carrier strike groups gain and maintain sea control as well as project naval airpower ashore.

The aircraft carrier USS George H.W. Bush (CVN-77) is the strike group's current flagship. As of 2012, other group units include Carrier Air Wing Eight; the cruisers USS Philippine Sea (CG-58), USS Leyte Gulf (CG-55), and USS Anzio (CG-68); and Destroyer Squadron 22: USS Gravely (DDG-107), USS Bainbridge (DDG-96), USS Mason (DDG-87), USS Bulkeley (DDG-84), USS Ross (DDG-71), USS Mitscher (DDG-57), USS Barry (DDG-52), USS Kauffman (FFG-59),.

The group traces its history to the creation of Carrier Division 2 on 1 April 1931. The group took its current form on 1 October 2004. On 29 July 2010, Rear Admiral Nora W. Tyson assumed command of the group, becoming the first woman to command a U.S. Navy carrier task group. The group's 2011 Mediterranean deployment marked the maiden deployment for the carrier George H.W. Bush and the guided-missile destroyer USS Truxtun (DDG-103).

Historical background
On 1 April 1931, Rear Admiral Joseph M. Reeves took command of Carrier Division Two (CarDiv 2), becoming the first carrier division commander in the U.S. Navy. Reeves was also designated as Commander Aircraft U.S. Fleet. Carrier Division Two initially consisted of the U.S. Navy's first true fast aircraft carriers, USS Lexington (CV-2) and USS Saratoga (CV-3), as well as former minesweeper USS Gannet (AM-41) which acted as an aircraft tender and guardship for the two carriers. Under Reeves' leadership, both carriers had previously distinguished themselves in two major naval exercises, the 1929 Fleet Problem IX and the 1930 Fleet Problem X, demonstrating the potential of aircraft carriers and their embarked air groups in naval offensive operations. Aircraft carriers from Carrier Division Two became the first to embark U.S. Marine Corps aviation units when, on 2 November 1931, squadron VS-14M joined the Saratoga and squadron VS-15M joined the Lexington.

In 1933, Saratoga and USS Langley (CV-1) were assigned to Carrier Division Two, which was under the Commander Aircraft, Battle Force, while Lexington was re-assigned to Carrier Division One under Commander Aircraft, Scouting Force. In February 1939, Carrier Division Two, now consisting of Yorktown and Enterprise, participated in the war game Fleet Problem XX. The scenario for the exercise called for one fleet to control the sea lanes in the Caribbean against the incursion of a foreign European power while maintaining sufficient naval strength to protect vital American interests in the Pacific. In December 1941, on the eve of the United States' entry into the Second World War, Carrier Division Two was under the command of Vice Admiral William F. Halsey, who was also the Commander Aircraft Battle Force in the Pacific Ocean.

During the Second World War, aircraft carriers assigned to Carrier Division Two participated in the Doolittle Raid, the Battle of Midway, the Battle of the Santa Cruz Islands, Operation Hailstone, the Battle of the Philippine Sea, and the Battle of Leyte Gulf, as well as the Solomon Islands campaign, the Gilbert and Marshall Islands campaign, the Hollandia and Western New Guinea campaign, the Philippines Campaign, the Mariana and Palau Islands campaign, the Iwo Jima campaign, and the Okinawan campaign, as part of the Navy's Fast Carrier Task Force. Rear Admiral Frederick C. Sherman commanded the division in 1943 while it was operating with the Fast Carrier Task Force.

On 1 August 1955 the division was made up of USS Bennington (CVS-20) (Newport) and USS Lake Champlain (CV-39) (flagship) at Mayport. Ranger sailed as the flagship of Rear Admiral H. H. Caldwell, Commander, Carrier Division 2, from Hawaii to join the Seventh Fleet in February 1959. Air operations off Okinawa were followed by maneuvers with naval units from U.S. Naval Base Subic Bay. A special weapons warfare exercise and a patrol along the southern seaboard of Japan followed. During this deployment, Ranger launched more than 7,000 sorties.

After the war, division aircraft carriers were involved in the Cuban Missile Crisis and the Vietnam War. USS Enterprise (CVN-65) flew the flag of Commander Carrier Division 2 in 1963. Rear Admiral Bernard M. Strean, as division commander, led Enterprise, Long Beach, and Bainbridge around the world in Operation Sea Orbit from July to October 1964. 'Sea Orbit' was a successful test of the first all-nuclear-powered task force. On 25 September 1965, Rear Admiral J. O. Cobb broke his flag as Commander, Carrier Division 2, aboard USS America (CV-66). The division was re-designated as Commander Carrier Group 2 (ComCarGru 2) in 1973.

In 1986, while commanding Carrier Group Two, Rear Admiral Jerry C. Breast commanded the USS Coral Sea (CV-43) carrier battle group and Task Group 60.1 of the U.S. Sixth Fleet during a series of naval maneuvers code-named Attain Document. These naval maneuvers were intended to assert the freedom of navigation in the Gulf of Sidra as well as to challenge the territorial claims of Libya to that body of water. Subsequently, the Coral Sea carrier battle group and the rest of Task Force 60 carried out Operation El Dorado Canyon, a series of punitive air-strikes against Libya in retaliations to the 1986 Berlin discotheque bombing.

On 15 August 1990, the group staff embarked in USS John F. Kennedy (CV-67) for a no-notification combat deployment in response to the Iraqi invasion of Kuwait. The battle group deployed for Operation Desert Storm only five days after notification, even though she had dispersed her air wing throughout the continental United States for training and just off-loaded stores and material in preparation for a routine yard period. Rear Admiral Riley Mixson, Commander, Carrier Group Two, acted as Commander, Battle Force Yankee of Naval Forces Central Command during the war. Battle Force Yankee included Saratoga and probably John F. Kennedy, and operated in the Red Sea.

In the summer of 1992, the U.S. Navy decided to group escorts more consistently with aircraft carriers. Instead of routinely changing the cruisers, destroyers, and frigates assigned to each carrier battle group, there was an attempt made to affiliate certain escorts more permanently with the carriers they escorted. Each of the Navy's 12 existing carrier battle groups was planned to consist of an aircraft carrier; an embarked carrier air wing; cruiser, destroyer, and frigate units; and two nuclear-powered attack submarines. In accordance with this reorganization Carrier Group Two was to consist of Carrier Air Wing Three; Destroyer Squadron 40; the nuclear submarines USS Seahorse (SSN-669) and USS Albuquerque (SSN-706); the guided-missile cruisers USS Wainwright (CG-28), USS Leyte Gulf (CG-55), and USS Gettysburg (CG-64); and the carrier Kennedy which served as the battle group's flagship.

During its Mediterranean deployments, the Kennedy battle group flew large numbers of Operation Deny Flight no-fly zone missions over Bosnia-Herzegovina. The battle group also saw service with the U.S. Fifth Fleet in support Operation Southern Watch, the enforcement of a no-fly zone over southern Iraq. Commander Carrier Group Two also served as Commander Joint Task Force 120 during Operation Uphold Democracy, the 1994–1995 intervention designed to remove the military regime in Haiti installed by the 1991 Haitian coup d'état. It appears that Kennedy transferred to another carrier group in 1995, as the announced 31 August 1995, listing of Carrier Group Two's composition included USS John C. Stennis (CVN-74) and USS San Jacinto (CG-56). In addition, USS Monterey (CG-61) was intended to join the group in 1996–97. In September 1995, USS Hue City (CG-66) joined Carrier Group Two. Hue City was transferred from Carrier Group 2 to the Western Hemisphere Group on 1 August 1998.

USS Theodore Roosevelt (CVN-71) was re-assigned to the group effective 1 February 2004, and the carrier underwent its Docked Planned Incremental Availability overhaul at the Newport Naval Yard in Virginia between 10 August to 10 December 2004.

Command structure
Commander Carrier Strike Group 2 (COMCARSTRKGRU 2 or CCSG 2) is responsible for unit-level training, integrated training, and material readiness for the group's ships and aviation squadrons. When not deployed, the strike group is part of the U.S. Fleet Forces Command, and its commander reports to Commander Task Force 80, the director of Fleet Forces' Maritime Headquarters. Carrier Strike Group Two is designated Task Group 80.2. When deployed overseas, the group comes under command of the numbered fleet (Third, Fourth, Fifth, Sixth, or Seventh) in whose area it is operating, and will have a task force or task group designator, for example, Task Group 50.1 in the Fifth Fleet area.

Group commanders since 2004 have included:

Operational history
On 1 October 2004, Carrier Group 2 was re-designated as Carrier Strike Group 2. Theodore Roosevelt underwent sea trials 11–15 December 2004, and the carrier was officially delivered back to the Navy on 17 December 2004. Joint Task Force Exercise 05-2 (JTFEX 05-2, or Operation Brewing Storm 2005) was held between 14–22 July 2005. It included Carrier Strike Group Two, Carrier Strike Group Ten, the Spanish frigate Álvaro de Bazán, and the Peruvian submarine Antofagasta. Carrier Strike Group Two received its Combat Operations Efficiency (COE) certification following the completion of its Composite Training Exercise on 17 July 2005.

2005–2006 deployment
The strike group departed from Norfolk on 1 September 2005 under the command of Rear Admiral James A. Winnefeld, Jr. On 6 October 2005, the group began air operations over Iraq, with fighter squadrons VF-213 and VF-31, along with the strike fighter squadrons VFA-87 and VFA-15, attacking insurgent targets. Electronic Attack Squadron 141 (VAQ-141) operated from Al Asad, Iraq, from 24 September to 6 October 2005, flying 37 combat sorties. Aircraft from squadrons VAW-124, VS-24, and HS-3 flew maritime security missions. Throughout the second week of November aircraft supported Operation Steel Curtain with five consecutive days of close air support for troops in Iraq. The deployment was the final one for the F-14 Tomcat, and on 6 February 2006, the last Grumman F-14 Tomcat recovered from a combat mission landed on board the Theodore Roosevelt. It was also the final deployment of the Lockheed S-3 Viking ASW aircraft of squadron VS-24. Carrier Strike Group Two transited the Suez Canal on 15 February 2006, completing its overseas deployment in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom. The strike group returned to Norfolk on 11 March 2006.
 * 2005–2006 deployment force composition
 * 2005–2006 deployment exercises and port visits

Operation Bold Step 2006
Code-named Operation Bold Step, Joint Task Force Exercise 06-2 (JTFEX 06-2) was held a major multi-laternal naval exercise helf off the U.S. eastern seaboard between 21–31 July 2006 under the overall command of Vice Admiral Mark P. Fitzgerald, the commander of the U.S. Second Fleet. Carrier Strike Group Two, Carrier Strike Group Eight, and the USS Bataan (LHD-5) Expeditionary Strike Group were the major U.S. naval formations participating in Operation Bold Step which served as a major pre-deployment training exercise. Other allied naval units that participated in Operation Bold Step included the French nuclear-powered submarine Émeraude and the Colombian diesel-electric submarine Tayrona.

2008–2009 deployment
On 8 September 2008, the strike group departed for a regularly scheduled deployment under the command of Rear Admiral Frank Craig Pandolfe. During its 2008 deployment, group aircraft flew more than 3,100 sorties into Afghanistan and dropped 59,500 pounds (27 MT) of ordnance while providing vital close air support to coalition forces operating as part of the International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) in Afghanistan. On 9 October 2008, Theodore Roosevelt and the guided missile cruiser USS Monterey (CG-61) participated in a one-day theater security cooperation exercise with three South African warships and one French Navy warship in the Indian Ocean following a 3-day port visit to Cape Town, the first by an U.S. aircraft carrier since 1967. Between 5–14 March 2009, Theodore Roosevelt, the cruiser USS Lake Champlain (CG-57), and the Coast Guard cutter USCGC Boutwell (WHEC-719) participated in the international naval exercise Aman 2009 off the coast of Pakistan. The exercise was sponsored by the Pakistani Navy, and it included surface exercises, air-defense training, explosive ordnance disposal (EOD) exercises, and participation in foreign officer exchanges. Aman 2009 include participants from Australia, Bangladesh, China, France, Japan, Kuwait, Malaysia, Nigeria, Turkey, United States, and the United Kingdom. Also, 46 observers from naval forces of 27 countries monitored the exercise.
 * 2008–2009 deployment force composition
 * 2008–2009 Deployment exercises and port visits

2010 operations
In early 2010, more than 172 sailors from Carrier Strike Group Two took part in Operation Unified Response, the relief effort for earthquaked-ravaged Haiti. Rear Admial David M. Thomas and his command staff managed the movement of U.S. food, water, medical supplies and relief personnel to Haiti from Naval Station Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, and ships operating off the coast. Thomas assumed command of Task Force 41, the U.S. Navy's sea-based element supporting JTF-Haiti, on 1 Feb 2010, after USS Carl Vinson (CVN-70)'s Carrier Strike Group One departed the area. The group staff alternated between being embarked aboard the amphibious assault ship USS Bataan (LHD-5) and living in tents outside of the U.S. Embassy in Port-au-Prince until late March. Most of the strike group staff returned to Naval Station Norfolk by 25 March 2010 after a 70-day tour of duty, with Rear Admiral Thomas returning on 1 April 2010.

2011 deployment
The group departed from Naval Station Mayport, Florida, for its Joint Task Force Exercise pre-deployment training exercise on 14 February 2011 prior to its deployment. The exercise was supported by personnel from NATO's Headquarters Naval Striking and Support Forces (STRIKFORNATO), with representatives from Canada, Denmark, Greece, Germany, France, Italy, the Netherlands, Spain, Turkey, the United Kingdom, and the United States. The objective of the exercise, which focused on major combat operations, was to increase allied multilateral interoperability. STRIKFORNATO's interest in JTFEX training cycle dates back to 2008, and this is the first time that STRIKFORNATO had participated as a component commander in a carrier strike group certification.

During its 2011 deployment, the group's aircraft completed nearly 12,000 sorties, made over 9,000 arrested landings, and logged almost 31,000 flight hours. This included 2,216 combat sorties supporting U.S. forces in Iraq and Afghanistan. Over 20 tons of ordnance were delivered in support of coalition ground forces, consisting of laser-guided bombs, GPS munitions, and 20-mm ammunition. Carrier Air Wing Eight also participated in joint air operations with the Royal Jordanian Air Force and the Royal Saudi Air Force. After departing Djibouti on 1 July 2011, USS Anzio (CG-68) conducted counter-piracy and maritime security operations as a unit of Combined Task Force 151 before paying a goodwill visit to Victoria, Seychelles on 18 August 2011. On 13 August 2011, while with Combined Task Force 150 operating in the Gulf of Aden, the destroyer Mitscher provided assistance to the Sri Lankan cargo vessel Al Habib which was experiencing engineering problems and running low on water. Mitscher's boarding party transported supplies to the Al Habib via rigid-hulled inflatable boat (pictured).

During the deployment, the group also participated in Exercise Saxon Warrior '11, an eight-day NATO military exercise in the Western Approaches. Saxon Warrior '11 included naval forces from the United States, the United Kingdom, France, Germany, Sweden, Canada, and Spain under the overall direction of Flag Officer Sea Training. As part of Saxon Warrior '11, on 21 May 2011, the group's destroyers Truxtun and Mitscher joined the U.S. replenishment tanker USNS Leroy Grumman (T-AO-195) and the Spanish frigate Almirante Juan de Borbón in conducting a transit exercise, with the British destroyer HMS Gloucester (D96) and frigate HMS Westminster (F237) acting as hostile forces during this exercise. Also, the guided-missile cruiser Gettysburg and the British destroyer HMS Dauntless (D33) conducted joint air defense exercises (pictured).

On 8 December 2011, Gettysburg returned to Naval Station Mayport, Florida, and was greeted by Vice President Joe Biden. On 10 December 2011, George H.W. Bush, Anzio, Mitscher, Truxtun returned to Naval Station Norfolk, Virginia, completing the first overseas deployment for the Bush and Truxtun. During 2011, the carrier George H.W. Bush and Carrier Air Wing Eight logged more than 250 days underway, 30,000 flight hours, and 14,000 sorties launched, which included 11,000 catapults shot, 15,000 aircraft recoveries, and no operational mishaps. The Bush also received the Battenberg Cup, Battle Effectiveness Award, and the Flatley Award for 2011.


 * 2011 deployment force composition
 * 2011 deployment exercises and port visits

2012-2013 operations
On 25 July 2012, George H.W. Bush, began its four-month overhaul at Norfolk Naval Shipyard at Portsmouth, Virginia, which included scheduled short-term technical upgrades. Also undergoing maintenance during 2012 were the guided-missile destroyers Bainbridge, Mason, Bulkeley, Ross, and Barry, as well as the guided-missile frigate Kauffman. In February 2013, the Mitscher entered the BAE Systems facility at Norfolk, Virginia, for a six-month dry-docked overhaul. Other units of Carrier Strike Group Two participated in a number of exercises and operations (see chart below) while the carrier George H.W. Bush did an onloading of munitions in anticipation of the group's upcoming overseas deployment.

On 1 December 2012, the George H.W. Bush completed its maintenance cycle and began sea trials on 3 December 2012. After completing sea trials on 4 December 2012, she began her training and qualification cycle in preparation for the group's 2013 deployment. During a two-week underway period beginning 14 Janauary 2012, the Bush tested the MV-22 tilt-rotor aircraft from squadron VMX-22 (pictured) as a potential carrier on-board delivery aircraft as well as operating mine-sweeping MH-53E helicopters from squadron HM-14. During a subsequent two-week underway period, the Bush tested a new torpedo self-defense system, as well as completed more than 115 launches and landings in assessing a new precision landing system, before returning to Norfolk on 24 May 2013. During underway periods in May and July 2013, the George H.W. Bush conducted at-sea flight tests for X-47B unmanned combat air vehicle (UCAV) in the Atlantic Ocean which included the first catapult launch and first arrested deck landing by an unmanned drone on an aircraft carrier.

The pre-deployment training cycle for Carrier Strike Group Two began with the successful completion of its Tailored Ship's Training Availability/Final Evaluation Problem (TSTA/FEP) training exercises on 23 August 2013. These exercises were the first time that the George H.W. Bush and Carrier Air Wing Eight had operated together since 2011.
 * 2012-2013 exercises and port visits