This is an email my brother sent me from his commanding officer, they have been out to sea for 9 months now!
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Aloha Family and Friends,
It's been an incredible month, and your PAUL HAMILTON Sailors have performed magnificently. As I write, it's a warm sunny day and I'm sitting on the bridge looking at shipmates with very large smiles on their face as PAUL HAMILTON is officially on the way home! We've departed the Arabian Gulf and commenced our 8,500 nautical mile transit back to Pearl Harbor. Morale is sky high, and excitement fills the air as we prepare for a long-awaited reunion.
Although the dangerous work is far from over, coalition forces are in Baghdad and the regime of Saddam Hussein is rapidly disintegrating. Thanks to the courageous efforts of our soldiers, Sailors, airmen and Marines, the Iraqi people are celebrating their newfound freedom. You may be justifiably proud that your PAUL HAMILTON Sailors contributed significantly to this noble endeavor. In support of Operation IRAQI FREEDOM, PAUL HAMILTON successfully fired more ordnance than any other surface combatant. We provided vital air defense to maritime forces and our cruise missile strikes were levied with unmatched swiftness and deadly precision. All hands demonstrated their remarkable teamwork and dedicated professionalism, enabling and supporting coalition forces ashore. We stood the long watch and were ready to fight when called. Our experience and high state of readiness were invaluable as the ABRAHAM LINCOLN Battle Group was the
centerpiece of the operation's naval component. Now our watch is over and it's time to return home.
Again, thank you for your tremendous support. Months of hard work are drawing to a close and we are finally heading home. It's been an honor and a privilege to serve with such a tremendous team of professionals - heroes one and all.
Thank you and I look forward to seeing you on the pier!
Warmest regards
CDR Frederick W. Pfirrmann, USN
Commanding Officer
USS PAUL HAMILTON (DDG 60)
