The commander of Destroyer Squadron (DESRON) 60 visited Sailors aboard guided-missile destroyer USS Gonzalez (DDG 66) during a port visit Jan. 18.
Capt. John Esposito and members of his staff visited the ship, where he held an all-hands call on the flight deck. Esposito told the crew what they could expect during the deployment, and what the Navy and their nation is expecting from them.
“I am expecting great things from you,” Esposito said. “The missions you will be supporting are extremely important.”
Commanded by Cmdr. Christopher H. Inskeep, Gonzalez left her homeport of Norfolk, Va., Jan. 4, for a scheduled deployment to support maritime security operations and theater security cooperation throughout the U.S. Naval Forces Europe-Africa and U.S. 6th Fleet Area of Responsibility.
Commander, DESRON 60, headquartered in Naples, Italy, provides commander, U.S. Naval Forces Europe-Africa and commander, U.S. 6th Fleet with a permanently assigned destroyer squadron, increasing the fleet’s options when undertaking national and theater level surface operations.
[mappress] Naval Today Staff, January 24, 2013; Image: US Navy