USS Princeton gearing up for deployment

Last month off the coast of Southern California, the USS Princeton guided missile cruiser completed a number of training sessions in order to gain experience when moving through narrow passages of water. 

For the March 25 exercise, in addition to the Princeton, "the aircraft carrier USS Nimitz, and guided missile destroyers USS Shoup, USS Howard and USS Pinckney conducted the exercise, steaming as one unified force," the U.S. Department of Defense announced. Also present were helicopters from Helicopter Maritime Strike Squadron 75.

"The purpose of this training is to motivate the sailors and give them the right knowledge on how to support the ship and the team as a whole," Navy Chief Gunner's Mate Trayvon Turner said. 

Aside from teaching narrow waterway strategies, the exercises helped build a working relationship between the ships and helicopters.

Navy Lt. Cmdr. Sean Cooper, the air boss of Princeton and officer in charge of Helicopter Maritime Strike Squadron 75, said of the helicopters' role in the exercise: "Our bird is all the way forward. It scopes out what is in front of the whole unit and relays information to the group."

Currently, the Princeton is involved with numerous training exercises as it prepares for deployment.

"These types of exercises test the mission readiness of a strike group's assets and their ability to perform as an integrated unit through the use of simulated real-world scenarios," the Department announcement said.