MC2 Adrian White Flight deck crew members aboard USS Carl Vinson (CVN 70) attach a hook to an MH-60S Sea Hawk helicopter during a vertical replenishment. Carl Vinson is conducting relief operations as part of Operation Unified Response after a 7.0 magnitude earthquake caused severe damage near Port-au-Prince, Haiti, Jan. 12. U.S. Navy photo by MC2 Adrian White.

The ship and its embarked air wing distributed more than 1.1 million pounds of emergency humanitarian aid for earthquake survivors in Haiti since commencing operations in support of Operation Unified Response.

Nineteen helicopters embarked aboard Carl Vinson, the first large-scale, airlift capability to arrive on scene, flew more than 1,000 hours in support of the operation and evacuated more than 450 patients requiring medical attention since their arrival off Haiti Jan. 15.

Ten helicopters from the carrier will remain with Joint Task Force-Haiti and will continue to support international relief efforts from other U.S. Navy ships operating near the Haitian coast.

Approximately 40 additional U.S. military helicopters continue to provide critical logistics support to the relief effort.

Also departing after contributing to the relief efforts are the guided-missile cruiser USS Bunker Hill (CG 52) and the oceanographic survey ship USNS Henson (T-AGS 63). The two ships were among the first U.S. Navy ships to join the carrier in the days immediately following the earthquake that devastated the Caribbean nation Jan. 12.

U.S. Air Force Gen. Douglas Fraser, commander of SOUTHCOM, lauded the contributions made by the men and women aboard the carrier and two ships in support of the critical early stages of the relief effort.

“I want to thank the thousands of Sailors who steamed towards Haiti in near record time to help the nation overcome the humanitarian crisis that immediately followed this natural disaster,“ Fraser said. “From emergency medical care aboard ships, to medical evacuation missions, to the rapid delivery of urgently-needed supplies, they helped save countless lives in the most desperate of times.“

Nineteen U.S. Navy, U.S. Coast Guard and U.S. Military Sealift Command ships continue to support Operation Unified Response, and seven additional U.S. military and civilian ships are en route to join the relief efforts.

Since the arrival of Carl Vinson, more than 16,000 additional U.S. military personnel have joined in support of relief workers from the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID), United Nations, the international community and Haiti providing humanitarian assistance to communities impacted by the disaster.

“While there is still much work to be done, the delivery of medical support and relief supplies is now much better organized, achieving a far greater capacity and reaching an increasing number of Haitian people than it was just a few days ago,“ Fraser said. “Keeping 10 helicopters from Carl Vinson ensures the continued flow of relief supplies where needed with no impact on aid distribution.“

After reviewing the U.S. military capabilities currently needed to support relief efforts in Haiti, the general said he will release elements of three U.S. Army aviation units and expressed his confidence that JTF-Haiti has the resources and personnel needed to support USAID and UN-led relief efforts and accomplish its humanitarian mission.

“I've made these decisions in consultation with the Joint Task Force commander and believe that we maintain sufficient capability to support the operation.“

Fraser said he will continue to assess the need for all the forces supporting the humanitarian mission.

“We are here to help the Haitian people,“ he said. “I want to make sure we have on station the necessary resources to do that.“

Carl Vinson will resume security cooperation activities with partner navies in the region while transiting to its homeport in San Diego.

Carl Vinson was conducting routine training off the U.S. East Coast when the magnitude 7.0 earthquake struck southern Haiti. With virtually no notice, the U.S. Navy dispatched the carrier and its support ships to the scene. The carrier embarked additional helicopters and humanitarian relief supplies while transiting south along the coast of Jacksonville, Fla.

Henson conducted oceanographic surveys near Port-au-Prince to assist Haitian officials with assessing underwater conditions impacting operations at the capital's port and evaluating needed repairs.

Henson will join USNS Sumner (T-AGS 61) for survey operations in the Caribbean.