USS KEARSARGE, At Sea – More than 1,000 Marines and sailors assigned to 26th Marine Expeditionary will redeploy to home stations in eastern North Carolina, May 12, after almost nine months deployed aboard the ships of the Kearsarge Amphibious Ready Group.

Deploying in August of last year, one month earlier than scheduled, 26th MEU delivered more than 3,000,000 pounds of aid to the people of Pakistan to support flood relief efforts. In January, Marines from the unit were sent into Afghanistan where they conducted combat operations as part of Operation Enduring Freedom. The following month, other elements were called upon to evacuate more than 300 Egyptians from unrest in Libya. As part of Operation Odyssey Dawn, in March, AV-8B Harrier jump jets struck repeatedly at Muammar al-Qadhafi’s forces who were threatening innocent Libyan civilians in the cities of Benghazi, Ajdabiyah, and Misratah. During this same operation, Marines, using MV-22B Osprey tiltrotor aircraft, rescued a downed Air Force pilot after he ejected from an F-15E Strike Eagle fighter over Libya. The Marines also teamed up with foreign militaries during Theater Security Cooperation exercises in the United Arab Emirates, Kenya, and Jordan throughout the deployment.