Gerald R. Ford Carrier Strike Group Enters SOUTHCOM for Counternarcotics Mission

The deployment fulfills a presidential directive to expand counternarcotics capacity under a regional joint task force.

Overview

The strike group entered the U.S. Southern Command area of responsibility on November 11, according to the Navy.
Pentagon spokesperson Sean Parnell said the increased presence will improve U.S. ability to detect, monitor, and disrupt illicit actors in the Western Hemisphere.
The force augments units already in the region, including the Iwo Jima Amphibious Ready Group with its embarked Marine expeditionary unit, under a joint task force targeting transnational criminal organizations.
The group comprises USS Gerald R. Ford with Carrier Air Wing Eight, destroyers USS Bainbridge and USS Mahan, and the integrated air and missile defense command ship USS Winston S. Churchill.
Gerald R. Ford carries more than 4,000 sailors and dozens of tactical aircraft, enabling sustained flight operations day or night across the expansive SOUTHCOM region.