The guided-missile destroyer USS Russell is scheduled to return to San Diego Sunday morning from a seven-month independent deployment.
The ship and its crew of 300 operated in the Pacific and Indian oceans, and the Persian Gulf, conducting maritime security operations, supporting strikes against the Islamic State, and escorting two carrier strike groups, according to the Navy.
"I am extremely proud of our sailors," said Cmdr. Gill McCarthy, commanding officer of the 505-foot-long vessel. "Our crew performed at an extremely high level for the entirety of our seven month deployment, ensuring that we were capable of carrying out a wide variety of tasking at all times."
The 20-year-old destroyer was based at Pearl Harbor until 2013, when it transferred to San Diego and went through a major overhaul. It's named for a father and son -- both named John Russell -- a Civil War sailor and Marine from the Spanish-American War who became the 16th commandant of the corps.
