Guided-missile cruiser USS Lake Erie (CG 70) played host to 3,415 San Diego residents and tourists for public ship tours May 21-22 while moored at Broadway Pier in downtown San Diego.

The ship and crew were able to showcase the Navy's surface warfare and guided-missile cruiser programs by guiding visitors throughout the common spaces of the ship and talk about their duties, as well as the ship's capabilities.

Capt. Scott Sciretta, Lake Erie's commanding officer, said he finds great pride in being able to command such a fine crew and bring his bright young Sailors to the public to showcase the ship.

"I am proudest of the Sailors who man this ship," Sciretta said. "These young men and women are bright and talented, maybe 18-years-old, and operating some of the most complex systems in the world. Allowing our Sailors to come here and interact with the public and show their pride in what they do to defend our nation is an incredible feeling."

The ship's visit to Broadway Pier was the third such public engagement organized by the Naval Surface Force, U.S. Pacific Fleet this year. The objective of the visits has been to give our neighbors the opportunity to talk with America's Sailors and help strengthen the bond between the military and civilians.

"I'm very proud to be a surface warfare officer and to have this opportunity to lead and work for these incredible men and women," Sciretta said. "This allows us to bring San Diego residents and visitors aboard and show them what we do to defend this great nation."

Lake Erie is homeported in San Diego and was commissioned in 1993. The ship is a multi-mission, anti-air warfare, anti-submarine warfare, long-range strike and anti-surface warfare surface combatant capable of supporting carrier and expeditionary strike groups, amphibious forces, or of operating independently and as flagships of surface action groups.

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