USS Vicksburg CG-69

• Commissioning: USS Vicksburg (CG-69) is a Ticonderoga-class guided-missile cruiser, commissioned on November 14, 1992, at Pascagoula, Mississippi. • Namesake: The ship is named after the city of Vicksburg, Mississippi, commemorating the pivotal Civil War siege and battle that took place there. • Maiden Deployment: In 1994, Vicksburg’s maiden deployment was with the USS Saratoga Carrier Battle Group to the Mediterranean Sea and the Adriatic Sea, supporting operations in Bosnia. • Operation Enduring Freedom: In 2001, after the September 11th attacks, the Vicksburg participated in Operation Enduring Freedom, conducting air defense and maritime operations in the Arabian Sea. • Counter-Narcotics Missions: Vicksburg has been deployed to the Caribbean and eastern Pacific on multiple occasions as part of counter-narcotics operations, intercepting drug shipments. • Missile Defense: The ship is equipped with the Aegis Combat System, capable of tracking and engaging multiple air, surface, and subsurface threats with Standard Missiles (SM-2 and SM-3). • Humanitarian Assistance: Vicksburg provided humanitarian aid to Haiti in 2004 following the devastation from Hurricane Jeanne, delivering supplies and medical support. • Anti-Piracy Operations: In 2006, Vicksburg participated in anti-piracy patrols off the coast of Somalia as part of Combined Task Force 150. • Flagship Duties: The ship has served as flagship for various U.S. Navy and NATO task groups, including Standing NATO Maritime Group 2 (SNMG-2) in 2015. • Planned Modernization: Vicksburg entered a modernization program in the mid-2010s, though as of the early 2020s, her future service and upgrades have faced delays and uncertainty.