USS Nimitz's sea trials mark the end of the ship's months of maintenance

Peiyu Lin, Kitsap Sun
·1 min read

BREMERTON — The USS Nimitz's sea trials last week marked the completion of the aircraft carrier's seven months of maintenance work on the Bremerton base.

On June 19, the Nimitz departed the Puget Sound Naval Shipyard and headed for sea trials. The trials were successful and the ship formally completed its planned incremental availability (PIA) period on June 22, the Navy said in a statement issued by the ship.

Work completed during the PIA period includes the flight deck and aircraft elevators, berthing upgrades, and combat system improvements, the Navy said.

The Nimitz started the PIA in January. The maintenance and upgrades took over 2,840,000 man-hours from the shipyard's team and its partners to get the ship ready, according to the statement.

More: USS Nimitz returns to Bremerton after 7-month deployment in Indo-Pacific

The ship is now back and docks in Bremerton.

Last July, the Nimitz returned to Bremerton from its seven-month deployment in the Indo-Pacific area and maintained freedom of navigation operations in the South China Sea. Last August and September, the Nimitz carrier strike group (CSG-11) went underway for six weeks to do its sustainment exercise (SUSTEX) in the Pacific Ocean, did flight operations with Carrier Air Wing 17 and tested core warfare areas.

The USS Nimitz passes the Hammerhead Crane as it returns to Naval Base Kitsap on a rainy Sunday, Sept. 24, 2023.
The USS Nimitz passes the Hammerhead Crane as it returns to Naval Base Kitsap on a rainy Sunday, Sept. 24, 2023.

Commissioned in 1975, the ship is now the oldest Nimitz-class aircraft carrier in service.

This article originally appeared on Kitsap Sun: Nimitz trials at sea, shipyard wraps up months of ship maintenance