USS Fitzgerald returns to San Diego after long deployment to Indo-Pacific and Middle East

The destroyer USS Fitzgerald returned to Naval Base San Diego on Tuesday following a seven-month deployment that briefly became controversial in July when Iran accused the warship of entering that country’s waters.

The U.S. Navy said Iran’s claim was groundless.

The flare-up occurred while the destroyer was patrolling the Middle East, a common destination for warships homeported in San Diego. The Fitzgerald also spent considerable time in the Indo-Pacific, notably in November when it participated in joint training with warships from Australia, India and Japan off Guam.

Burke-class destroyers were originally designed to serve for 35 years. The Fitzgerald will turn 31 in October. It’s possible that it will remain in service well past the age of 35 due to a backlog in naval shipbuilding.

Another Burke-class destroyer homeported at Naval Base San Diego, the USS Stockdale, will soon be repaired and modernized, thanks to a $61.3 million contract with San Diego’s BAE Systems awarded by the Pentagon.

The ship completed its last deployment in February. During that mission, Stockdale helped shoot down missiles and drones that Iran-backed Houthi rebels fired at commercial ships and San Diego’s USS Abraham Lincoln Carrier Strike Group.