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thedrifter
02-27-07, 07:35 AM
Miramar jets lead air wing in combat over Afghanistan

By Gidget Fuentes - Staff writer
Posted : Tuesday Feb 27, 2007 5:21:56 EST

SAN DIEGO – An F/A-18 squadron from Miramar Marine Corps Air Station led the first combat missions flown into Afghanistan from the aircraft carrier John C. Stennis on its latest deployment, according to the Navy.

The “Death Rattlers” of Marine Fighter Attack Squadron 323 flew off the carrier’s deck on Feb. 23 and began conducting combat missions over Afghanistan with Carrier Air Wing 9, Stennis Carrier Strike Group officials said in a press release.

Stennis, a Bremerton, Wash.,-based nuclear-powered carrier, arrived in the Arabian Sea on Feb. 19 on an accelerated deployment to the region to join the Norfolk, Va.-based carrier Dwight D. Eisenhower Carrier Strike Group and bolster U.S. naval forces and support ongoing combat operations in Afghanistan and Iraq, including maritime security operations at sea.

“Our current mission is to provide air support to the coalition forces on the ground in Afghanistan,” Capt. Brad E. Johanson, Stennis’ commanding officer, said in the release. “There are currently 32,000 coalition security force personnel from 37 different countries providing assistance to the government of Afghanistan in stabilizing their nation. We are providing an opportunity for the government of Afghanistan to establish a secure foundation for democracy in their nation.”

Stennis left its Bremerton home on Jan. 16 and stopped in San Diego before heading to Guam and to the U.S. Fifth Fleet area.

Rear Adm. Kevin M. Quinn commands Carrier Strike Group Three aboard Stennis. The strike group includes Destroyer Squadron 21, guided-missile cruiser Antietam, guided-missile destroyers Preble and O’Kane and the fast combat support ship Bridge.

Along with VMFA-323 with Carrier Air Wing 9 are Strike Fighter Squadrons 146, 147 and 154 from Lemoore, Calif.; Tactical Electronic Warfare Squadron 138 from Whidbey Island, Wash.; Carrier Early Warning Squadron 112 from Point Mugu, Calif.; Sea Control Squadron 31 from Jacksonville, Fla.; Helicopter Anti-Submarine Squadron 8 from Coronado, Calif.; and Fleet Logistics Support Squadron 30 from Coronado

Ellie