--- title: "Check Out How Rusty And Battered USS Stout Looks After Spending A Record 215 Days At Sea" description: "Stout's sailors went from March to October without setting foot on land and performed maintenance usually done in port while at sea." date: "2020-10-16" modified: "2020-11-27" authors: - name: "Tyler Rogoway" job_title: "Editor-in-Chief" link: "https://www.twz.com/authors/tyler-rogoway.md" url: "https://www.twz.com/37094/check-out-how-rusty-and-battered-uss-stout-looks-after-spending-a-record-215-days-at-sea" categories: - "Arleigh Burke Class" - "Destroyers" - "Navies" - "Sea" - "U.S. Navy" tags: - "215 days at sea" - "Arleigh Burke" - "Battered" - "COVID-19" - "DDG-55" - "destroyer" - "Must Read Features" - "Navy" - "Record breaking deployment" - "Rust" - "USS Stout" - "Weathered" --- # Check Out How Rusty And Battered USS Stout Looks After Spending A Record 215 Days At Sea ![The Navy is no longer brushing off rust repair]() *(U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 1st Class Jason Pastrick / Released)* It's amazing what the crew of the *Arleigh Burke* class destroyer USS *Stout* (DDG-55) has pulled off. In the face of the [COVID-19 pandemic]() that swept the world, impacting their fellow sailors on other [ships in unprecedented ways](), *Stout* sailed on... And on... *And on*. This ship stayed at sea for a whopping *215 days straight* and she has the wear and tear to show for it. The fighting ship looks like a set from a dystopian naval thriller, streaked in rust, her hull dinged and battered from the hard deployment. The ship didn't pull into a single port between early March and her arrival in Rota, Spain on October 3rd. In that period of time, she spent her time escorting ships, including *Wasp* class amphibious assault ship USS *Bataan* (LHD-5) and the *Nimitz* class aircraft carriers USS *Dwight D. Eisenhower* (CVN-69) and USS *Nimitz* (CVN-68), as well as executing a slew of other tasks in the 2nd, 5th and 6th Fleets' areas of responsibilities. In that time, *Stout* executed three dozen consecutive underway replenishment cycles and executed maintenance that is usually done in port, while remaining at sea. The Navy stated the following in a [release](): > "As COVID-19 made frequent port visits unsafe, *Stout* competed the first modern Mid-Deployment Voyage Repair (MDVR) period at sea, spending a week executing scheduled maintenance and preservation to maintain mission readiness while deployed. Throughout the deployment, Stout’s technicians executed depot-level repairs on vital engineering and combat systems equipment." Amazing. ![message-editor%2F1602829807785-23523ff.jpg]() **Stout* finally home, her bridge and radar arrays streaked in rust., *U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 1st Class Jason Pastrick** The previous record for consecutive days at sea was held by the *Nimitz* class supercarrier USS *Dwight D. Eisenhower* and the *Ticonderoga* class cruiser USS *San Jacinto,* both of which *Stout* supported on her cruise. Those ships had spent [206 days at sea]() due to the same circumstances. Prior to that, the record was 160 days. The weathered destroyer finally pulled into Naval Station Norfolk on October 11th, 2020, ending her historic deployment. She hadn't been home since mid-January and traveled over 60,000 miles on her extended voyage. So, how did the crew stay sane bottled up for hundreds of days on a warship out at sea? The Navy writes: > "During that period the ship conducted morale events, like [swim calls and steel beach picnics]()... To allow the crew time to relax and reenergize, they had a 'rest & reset' period at sea." A for how rough the ship looks, we asked our friend, Navy veteran, [*Defense News* reporter](), and the king of 'running rust' commentary, David Larter, his thoughts: > "She looks like she was put through the wringer. Look, they haven't been in port, haven't been able to do much topside preservation, I imagine. She gets a pass. But these long deployments and 208-day underways are going to take a toll on these ships inside and out. It's honestly impressive they kept a quarter-century old ship in running form that long! But the Navy will have to pay the piper. This is unsustainable." He's absolutely right when it comes to the sustainability of a fleet being pushed to the edge and beyond when it comes to deployments and operations tempo. This is especially relevant considering the service's high ambitions of maintaining a future [fleet of 500 ships](), a goal that sits in [stark contrast to the number]() and [readiness]() of support and maintenance facilities available to maintain even the aging fleet the Navy already has, which is under 300 ships. It also speaks to the retention of sailors that are being asked to [work harder and longer](), and, in these latest cases, seeing little of the world in the process. Regardless of the technology available today, the Navy still runs largely on raw manpower. Pushing sailors to the brink over and over again to [contend with rising threats](), the need to be seemingly everywhere, and now COVID-19, could have [major readiness implications]() down the line. Regardless, *Stout's* crew deserves an extremely well-earned rest—on land. By the looks of it, so does the 26-year-old ship. ![message-editor%2F1602830258159-32553267.jpg]() **U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 1st Class Jason Pastrick** *Contact the author: Tyler@thedrive.com* ## Author Tyler’s passion is the study of military technology, strategy, as well as foreign policy, and he has fostered a dominant voice on those topics in the defense and national security space. Tyler was the creator of the hugely popular defense site *Foxtrot Alpha* before developing *TWZ*, which he continues to lead as the Editor-In-Chief to this day. ### Author social links [Twitter]()