George H.W. Bush Carrier Strike Group Completes COMPTUEX

06 March 2026

From USS George H.W. Bush Public Affairs

The Nimitz-class aircraft carrier USS George H.W. Bush transits the Atlantic Ocean, Feb. 8, 2026. The George H.W. Bush Carrier Strike Group is at sea training as an integrated warfighting team. Composite Training Unit Exercise (COMPTUEX) is the Joint Force’s most complex integrated training event and prepares naval task forces for sustained high-end Joint and combined combat. Integrated naval training provides combatant commanders and America’s civilian leaders highly capable forces that deter adversaries, underpin American security and economic prosperity, and reassure Allies and partners. (U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 2nd Class Jayden Brown)

ATLANTIC OCEAN - The Sailors, ships, squadrons and staffs of the George H.W. Bush Carrier Strike Group (GHWBCSG) successfully completed Composite Training Unit Exercise (COMPTUEX) March 5, 2026.

The exercise brings together all elements of a carrier strike group to operate as a cohesive, multi-domain fighting force under realistic conditions through simulated scenarios, live, virtual, and constructive training and the full integration of squadrons and surface platforms, resulting in CSG 4 deployment certification recommendations for U.S. Fleet Forces Command.

“COMPTUEX is the certification event for the strike group to let us know we are ready for major combat operations around the world,” said Rear Adm. Alexis Walker, commander, Carrier Strike Group 10. “It brings the entire strike group team together and enables us to operate as we would when we’re forward deployed.”

Over several weeks, units were tested in air, surface, subsurface and cyber warfare areas across all domains in increasingly complex scenarios designed to stress command and control, logistical endurance and combat integration.

Carrier Air Wing (CVW) 7, composed of nine squadrons and approximately 2,400 Sailors and naval aviators, played a central role in the exercise.

“Carrier Wing 7, the ‘Freedom Fighters’, remain credible, relevant and lethal,” said Capt. Martin Fentress Jr., commander, CVW-7. “Through each training evolution, we demonstrated the ability to overcome challenges and sustain combat power.”

Fentress noted the difficulty of integrating personnel and aircraft from across multiple locations.

“One of the biggest challenges is the tyranny of distance,” Fentress said. “Bringing thousands of Sailors in nine squadrons from across the nation together - focused on one mission - is a real hurdle. But the work required to overcome that tension builds the camaraderie we need and will help sustain us through deployment.”

The GHWBCSG repeatedly demonstrated the accurate and rapid launch and recovery of its air assets. Over the course of 28 days, Carrier Air Wing 7 flew 1,586 sorties, tallying up a robust 693 arrested landings during the day and 682 at night. The culmination of such speed and endurance is an offensive capability unique to the United States that enables a level of warfighting strength that is not lost on Fentress.

“To put it simply, the Carrier Airwing is the business end,” said Fentress. “We are the ‘strike’ in Carrier Strike Group 10. We provide the combat power projection that no one else can. We are the reason that presidents for generations have asked - when there’s an issue or problem over the horizon - ‘Where are my carriers?’”

For Capt. Robert Bibeau, commanding officer, USS George H.W. Bush, the completion of COMPTUEX reflects a crew prepared to answer the nation’s call.

“This ship exists for one purpose: to project decisive combat power wherever our nation requires it,” Bibeau said. “Our Sailors have trained to the highest standards, and they have shown the flexibility and the adaptability that’s necessary to be successful in our mission.”

As a career F/A-18 pilot, Bibeau emphasized the importance of readiness in the face of danger.

“We know our fellow service members are operating in harm’s way right now,” he said. “Our job is to ensure that when they need us - whether for air superiority, strike, electronic warfare, or presence – we are ready to deliver immediately and without hesitation.”

Throughout COMPTUEX, the strike group also operated alongside allied forces, reinforcing interoperability with NATO allies and enhancing combined maritime capabilities.

“Almost every deployment we operate with our NATO allies,” Fentress said. “Interoperability is a constant wherever we go.”

Fentress expressed confidence the Airwing is ready to get underway should the need arise.

“Carrier Airwing 7 stands ready today to deploy if called upon,” said Fentress. “We have demonstrated through each of the training evolutions that not only are we trained mentally to overcome any issue, but that we also have the stamina physically and that our machines are ready.”

More broadly, Rear Adm. Walker expressed confidence in the strike group’s readiness.

“I believe the members of the George H.W. Bush are ready to deploy today,” Walker said. “I’ve been very pleased with the way we’ve come together.”

Capt. Bibeau echoed that confidence, invoking the ship’s motto.

“’Freedom at Work’ is more than a motto,” he said. “It represents disciplined Sailors executing complex missions under pressure, day and night. It represents a mindset that we are ready to serve our nation and support our allies around the world.”

Capt. Bibeau expressed his satisfaction that the GHWBSG has reached the milestone of deployment readiness and reflected on what that means.

“History does not remember those who hoped they were ready – it remembers those who actually were. This crew has earned its certification through discipline, sacrifice, and unwavering teamwork. I have no doubt in the coming months we will be tested and I have every confidence our efforts will result in a successful mission and a safe return home.”

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