The aircraft carrier USS George H.W. Bush (CVN 77) (GHWB) entered Norfolk Naval Shipyard (NNSY) to begin a scheduled planned incremental availability (PIA), June 16.

GHWB transited the Elizabeth River en route to NNSY. During the "dead-stick" transit, Sailors on the bridge steered the ship while tugboats guided it into place upon its entrance into the shipyard.

The ship is scheduled to spend eight months at NNSY receiving upgrades and repairs necessary to successfully accomplish future missions. GHWB will go through both ship's-force maintenance and contractor work during its shipyard period.

Capt. Andrew J. Loiselle, commanding officer of GHWB, said the scheduled maintenance period will be a great opportunity for the contractors and crew to address the wear and tear that resulted from the 2014 deployment.

"Our ship has accomplished some great things these past two years, and this crew has done some truly impressive work", said Loiselle. "This shipyard period will be critical to the future readiness of our ship and will be essential to accomplishing the Navy's mission."

GHWB crew has been preparing for its shipyard period since returning from a nine-month deployment to the U.S. 5th and 6th Fleet areas of responsibility in November.