The USS Gerald R. Ford sailed into uncertain waters Tuesday morning.
The carrier has been scheduled to leave for several weeks, but the crew of 4,500 sailors have become part of the buildup of U.S. forces after the U.S. joined Israel in bombing Iranian nuclear sites over the weekend.
While President Donald Trump attempted to hold together a fragile ceasefire between Iran, Israel and the United States, families waited beside the pier as the crew manned the rails while the ship prepared to depart.
“I see a lot of people that are supporting everything that's going on, and you see some that are definitely against it. Personally, I think we're on the right track to hopefully calm things down,” said Jack Cannon, whose son, Command Master Chief JD Cannon, was on board.
The Ford was set to deploy to the region which includes the Mediterranean even before tensions began rising in the Middle East. The newest aircraft carrier can travel 700 miles in a day, said Rear Adml. Paul Lanzilotta, commander of Carrier Strike Group 12.
“We're ready to change our plan. We have planning meetings literally every day, and the ship and the carrier strike group are incredibly flexible in that way,” he said.
The USS Ford set sail roughly 18 months after returning home from a deployment to the eastern Mediterranean. The carrier was in the region just after war originally broke out in Gaza in October 2023. The Ford stayed out for eight months.
Since that war began, the Norfolk-based carrier USS Truman stayed out for eight months and the USS Eisenhower for nine months. Given the current threat, Lanzilotta said the Ford is prepared to stay out beyond the normal seven month-long deployment schedule for U.S. aircraft carriers.
He said the last couple of years have reinforced “why every sailor on this ship has an important job that we need them for. So you need to wake up every morning with purpose in your heart.”
Two friends of the mother of Petty Officer 1st Class Kanisha McDonald stayed until the ship departed. McDonald’s mother died a month after the avionics technician returned from the Ford’s last deployment.
“Definite pride, she just wants to make sure that they're out there doing their jobs and protecting our country. But again, it's just the emotion of leaving everyone behind and at home. This one just kind of feels a little bit different,” said Shannon Luzzi.
Luzzi and Reginia Brown helped McDonald move into the berthing area the night before.
“We brought her here. We gave our hugs. We talked, gave a pep talk, and told her how we would be there for her when she got back and throughout the journey,” Brown said. “I’m worried. It’s just how I am.”
