Navy:
The Ohio-class guided-missile submarine USS Michigan (SSGN 727) returned home to the Pacific Northwest Aug. 1, following a 20-month deployment in the Western Pacific.
Since its departure in December 2013, Michigan was forward-deployed to Guam, where it conducted surveillance, training and other critical missions in the 7th Fleet Area of Operation.
“During the deployment, the ship supported multiple Commander, Task Force 74 priority areas with four great liberty ports including Singapore, Philippines, Republic of Korea (ROK) and Japan,” said Capt. Benjamin Pearson III, Michigan Gold crew commanding officer. “The two crews throughout the nearly two years worked tirelessly together as a great Michigan team to keep a 33-year-old ship ready to fight at the tip of the spear for the 7th Fleet and the nation.”
The Blue crew conducted a change of command ceremony at Fleet Activities Yokosuka, Japan July 7, 2015. Capt. Joe Turk relieved Capt. Erik A. Burian as commanding officer. This was the first time Michigan had ever conducted a change of command ceremony in Japan.
Michigan also worked with partners from the Republic of Korea Navy (ROKN) in Busan and visited Singapore’s Changi Naval Base to build and maintain maritime partnerships. The rotating crews swapped five times throughout the deployment.
