A woman photographs the USS Stout as it sails past the Statue of Liberty during the parade of ships for Fleet Week in New York City on May 20, 2015.Brendan McDermid / Reuters file
NBC: U.S. missile destroyer ship breaks Navy record for longest stint at sea
The USS Stout reached 208 days at sea Sept. 26 as the Navy has imposed restrictions on port visits to protect sailors from the coronavirus.
A U.S. guided missile destroyer ship has broken the record for the longest consecutive number of days at sea for a military surface vessel, the Navy said Tuesday, underscoring the effects of restrictions related to the coronavirus pandemic.
The USS Stout reached 208 days at sea Sept. 26, spending nearly seven months in the Middle East and the North Africa area, known as the U.S. 5th Fleet area of operations. The previous record of 207 days, held by the USS Dwight D. Eisenhower and the USS San Jacinto, was also set this year.
The Covid-19 pandemic has forced the Navy to cancel port visits to prevent sailors from being exposed while ashore.
Earlier this year, more than 1,000 sailors were infected with Covid-19 on board the aircraft carrier USS Theodore Roosevelt. One sailor died and the aircraft carrier was sidelined in Guam for weeks.
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WNU Editor: 208 days at sea. Wow! That is a long deployment.
