11th MEU, Bonhomme Richard ARG on way home

By Gidget Fuentes - Staff writer
Posted : Friday Apr 2, 2010 15:52:01 EDT

SAN DIEGO — More than 4,300 Marines and sailors are heading home to California from their seven-month deployment with the Bonhomme Richard Amphibious Ready Group and 11th Marine Expeditionary Unit.

On Thursday — April Fool’s Day — amphibious assault ship Bonhomme Richard crossed the International Date Line, a day its skipper, Capt. John Funk, in a message posted on the ship’s Facebook page, noted lasted “an interesting 47 hours.” The crossing of another time zone shortened the extended day by one hour.

Bonhomme Richard and two other amphibious ships of the San Diego-based ready group, dock landing ship Rushmore and transport dock Cleveland, spent more than four months in the Persian Gulf and Horn of Africa regions conducting maritime security operations, and supporting theater security and cooperation exercises, including training in Kuwait, Djibouti and Tiimor-Leste.

A six-day liberty visit to Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, in mid-March came after 127 consecutive days at sea for the big deck Bonhomme Richard.

Command of the ready group changed hands in December when Capt. Rodney Clark, commodore and commander of Amphibious Squadron 7, handed the reins to Capt. Timothy Wilson during a ceremony aboard Bonhomme Richard.

Rushmore and Cleveland had left San Diego on Sept. 18 for the scheduled deployment, but Bonhomme Richard, along with more than 1,000 Marines, left San Diego on Sept. 24 after a week’s delay for repairs of cracks and leaks in three steam service turbine generators.

The 2,100-member 11th MEU, commanded by Col. Gregg Olson, includes Battalion Landing Team 2/4, Marine Medium Helicopter Squadron 166 (Reinforced) and Combat Logistics Battalion 11.

Navy units include Assault Craft Unit 1’s Detachment B, ACU 5’s Detachment F, Tactical Air Control Squadron 12’s Detachment 1, Helicopter Sea Combat Squadron 23’s Detachment 3 and Fleet Surgical Team 9.