USS Fort McHenry ( LSD - 43 ) USS Fort McHenry ( LSD - 43 ) was laid down on 10 June 1983 by Lockheed Shipbuilding in Seattle , Washington . She was launched on 1 February 1986 ( sponsored by The Honorable Helen D . Bentley ) , and commissioned on 8 August 1987 in Seattle , Commander George S . " Dusty " Rhodes in command . History . 1988 – 1995 . " Fort McHenry " < nowiki > ' < / nowiki > s maiden deployment was from June 1988 to December 1988 to the Western Pacific . Following her return , " Fort McHenry " participated in the cleanup of the " Exxon Valdez " oil spill from 28 April – 22 June 1989 . In recognition of the crew ' s effectiveness during the cleanup operation , " Fort McHenry " was awarded the Meritorious Unit Commendation and the Coast Guard Special Operations Service Ribbon . On 20 June 1990 , " Fort McHenry " began her second deployment and spent 10 months in the Persian Gulf for Desert Shield / Desert Storm . When she returned to her homeport of San Diego on 17 April 1991 , " Fort McHenry " received the Navy Unit Commendation , National Defense Service Medal , Southwest Asia Service Medal , Kuwait Liberation Medal ( Saudi Arabia ) , Kuwait Liberation Medal ( Kuwait ) and the Combat Action Ribbon . Eight months later , " Fort McHenry " deployed to the Western Pacific on 6 January 1992 . After several successful multinational exercises and port visits , " Fort McHenry " returned to San Diego on 6 July 1992 . Following an extensive overhaul period , " Fort McHenry " began the training cycle to prepare for her next deployment . While in the training cycle , " Fort McHenry " transited to the East Coast through the Panama Canal to pick up five new LCAC s from Panama City , Florida . At the completion of the training cycle , " Fort McHenry " embarked on her fourth deployment from 9 June – 9 December 1994 . While deployed , " Fort McHenry " participated in Operation Restore Hope . The ship also participated in Operation Vigilant Warrior . Following the deployment , " Fort McHenry " was awarded her second Navy Unit Commendation and Armed Forces Expeditionary Medal and also received her fourth Battle Efficiency Award . 1995 – 2000 . On 1 September 1995 , " Fort McHenry " departed San Diego to become one of the units forward - deployed to Sasebo , Japan . Since her arrival to Japan , " Fort McHenry " has participated in training exercises and multi - national exercises such as exercise Tandem Thrust and Crocodile in Australia , Cobra Gold in Thailand , and Foal Eagle in South Korea . She visited ports during those exercises including Shanghai , China , and Kure , Japan . During May 1998 , " Fort McHenry " participated on Cooperation Afloat Readiness and Training ( CARAT 98 ) , which includes visits and exercises with countries in the Western Pacific such as Brunei , Singapore , Malaysia and Thailand . In addition to her involvement in CARAT 98 , " Fort McHenry " received the Commander , Naval Surface Pacific Fleet Wellness Unit Award for 1997 and the Chief of Naval Operations Safety Award for 1997 on 1 June 1998 . After spending January 1999 in Hong Kong , " Fort McHenry " entered the competitive phase of her training cycle . In April 1999 , " Fort McHenry " participated in exercise Tandem Thrust 99 in Guam . " Fort McHenry " was also named a repeat winner of the Commander , Naval Surface Pacific Fleet Wellness Unit Award . Finally , during June 1999 , " Fort McHenry " underwent two Total Ship Training Assessments ( TSTA ) , which confirmed the ship ' s training progress during the 1999 competitive cycle . In 2000 , " Fort McHenry " participated in exercise Balikatan 2000 with the Philippine Armed Forces . The ship was named a repeat winner of the Battle Efficiency Award , Command Excellence Awards for Maritime Warfare , Engineering / Survivability , Command and Control , and Logistics Management for her achievements during the 1999 fiscal year . After Balikatan 2000 was completed , " Fort McHenry " continued her hectic schedule by participating in Exercise Cobra Gold 2000 , during May 2000 , with the navies of Thailand and Singapore . The busy schedule continued in October 2000 , when " Fort McHenry " participated in Exercise Neptune Thunder 00 with US Army forces stationed in South Korea . From 27 October to 3 November , " Fort McHenry " concluded the year , and the millennium , with her participation in Exercise Foal Eagle which took placed in South Korea . 2001 – 2006 . " Fort McHenry " spent the first half of 2001 in a lengthy Ship Required Availability period . During this period the ship acquired two new weapon systems , Rolling Airframe Missile ( RAM ) Launcher and Ship ' s Self Defense System ( SSDS ) , both would greatly increased the ship ' s defensive capabilities . After returning to sea in June 2001 , " Fort McHenry " entered the middle of her training cycle . The ship completed a port visit to Kagoshima , Japan in August 2001 , where approximately seven thousand residents of Kagoshima toured " Fort McHenry " . In 2004 , " Fort McHenry " was commanded by Commander Mark E . Weber , USN , forward deployed at FA Sasebo , Japan , and assigned to Amphibious Group 1 . In May 2004 , " Fort McHenry " departed for a three - month deployment along with several ships including , , and . The deployment was centered around an annual exercise called Cooperation Afloat Readiness and Training ( CARAT ) 2004 . Following a two and a half month SAR period , " Fort McHenry " was once again put into action as she was emergency deployed to the Philippines after several typhoons hit the country during November 2004 . It provided a platform for U . S . Air Force helicopter s to bring much - needed fuel into the Philippines . In 2005 " Fort McHenry " participated in tsunami relief in the Asian Tsunami Crisis . It provided a platform for six CH - 46 s helicopters and LCAC s to bring much - needed supplies into Banda Aceh , Indonesia . During Operation Unified Assistance , " Fort McHenry " was joined by many USN ships including the and . Following this tasking , " Fort McHenry " immediately went to the island of Iwo Jima to join American & Japanese veterans for the 60th commemoration of the Battle of Iwo Jima . CDR Mike Talaga took command of " Fort McHenry " in May 2005 . Soon after the change of command , " Fort McHenry " deployed for the first half of Cooperation Afloat Readiness and Training ( CARAT ) 2005 . This deployment was completed by the and . On 31 March 2006 , arrived in Sasebo to replace " Fort McHenry " . The crews of the two ships swapped hulls , after which , on 13 April " Tortuga " < nowiki > ' < / nowiki > s old crew took " Fort McHenry " back to NAB Little Creek , Virginia , where she is now homeported . As of January 2007 she is undergoing a major maintenance overhaul at Naval Station Norfolk . 2007 . The United States Department of Defense stated on 15 October 2007 that the " Fort McHenry " was slated to leave Little Creek , Virginia , 16 October 2007 for a seven - month deployment to the Gulf of Guinea that the chief of U . S . Africa Command said will exemplify how his new command will operate . The amphibious dock landing ship served as a platform for the Africa Partnership Station Initiative , which aims to work cooperatively with U . S . and international partners in promoting maritime security in Western Africa . The ship sailed to Spain to take on officers for the internal APS staff from several European partners — Spain , the United Kingdom , Portugal and Germany , among them — before heading to the Gulf of Guinea . Her full complement included representatives of U . S . and partner nations ' government agencies and non - governmental organizations , all working together to help African nations increase their ability to provide maritime security . In addition to the U . S . military , U . S . agencies that participated were the State Department , Department of Homeland Security , U . S . Agency for International Development , National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration , and U . S . Coast Guard . High Speed Vessel " Swift " joined " Fort McHenry " in the Gulf of Guinea , where it transported students as well as trainers during visits to Senegal , Liberia , Ghana , Cameroon , Gabon , Sao Tome and Principe . 2008 . On 1 January 2008 , the U . S . Navy announced that two U . S . Navy sailors from the " Fort McHenry " were found dead in a hotel room in the West African nation of Ghana . They were found dead in their room at a hotel in Tema , where they had taken time off during the APS mission , the Navy said in a statement . " The cause of death is unknown and is being investigated by host nation authorities in cooperation with U . S . Navy , " the statement said , giving no other details . They had checked into the La Palm Royal Beach Hotel on New Year ' s Eve and have been identified . Confirming some details to the " Daily Graphic " in Accra , the Director - General of the CID , Deputy Commissioner of Police ( DCOP ) Frank Adu - Poku , said information available to the police indicated that some other colleagues of the deceased were with them but they left the hotel for the ship , which was anchored off the Ghanaian coast . DCOP Adu - Poku said the police were trying to secure entry visas for the detectives and a pathologist to accompany the bodies to Germany for the post - mortem . After a final APS port visit in Dakar , Senegal , to coincide with the Maritime Safety and Security Seminar co - hosted by the Armed Forces of Senegal and the Commander of the US Naval Forces Europe , the " Fort McHenry " made stops in Madeira ( Portugal ) and Rota ( Spain ) before returning to her homeport of Norfolk on 4 May 2008 . 2009 . On 13 May 2009 the " Fort McHenry " left her homeport at Little Creek Naval Amphibious Base for a regularly scheduled deployment as part of the Bataan Amphibious Ready Group ( BATARG ) and 22nd Marine Expeditionary Unit ( 22 MEU ) , including more than 4 , 000 sailors and marines . The BATARG / 22 MEU will support maritime security operations , provide crisis response capability and increase theater security cooperation and forward naval presence in the 5th and 6th Fleet areas of operation . BATARG is composed of USS " Fort McHenry " , the multi - purpose amphibious assault ship USS " Bataan " , and the amphibious transport dock USS " Ponce " . The 22 MEU includes a battalion landing team from 3rd Battalion , 2nd Marine Regiment , an aviation combat team composed of elements from Marine Medium Tiltrotor Squadron 263 ; elements of Combat Logistics Battalion 22 ; and the MEU ' s command section . In December 2009 the ship ' s skipper , Commander Christopher M . Stopyra , was relieved of duty as a result of a fraternization investigation . The ship ' s executive officer , Lieutenant Commander Brian P . Goldschmidt , was also relieved . Stopyra was replaced by Captain Skip Shaw , the ship ' s previous CO . 2010 . On 13 January 2010 , the " Fort McHenry " was ordered to assist in the relief efforts following the 2010 Haiti earthquake . 2012 . The ship is scheduled to dock in Dublin port , Ireland on 31 August for the American football game " The Emerald Classic " between Notre Dame University ' s " Fighting Irish " and the US Naval Academy . On board will be a crew of 350 sailors and 400 marines .