Arleigh Burke-class destroyer in the context of "USS Mitscher (DDG-57)"

Carrier Strike Group 3 (CSG-3 or CARSTRKGRU 3) is a U.S. Navy carrier strike group. Carrier strike groups gain and maintain sea control as well as project naval airpower ashore. The aircraft carrier USS Abraham Lincoln (CVN-72) is the group's current flagship. Other units assigned as of 2024 include Carrier Air Wing Nine, the Arleigh Burke-class destroyers USS O'Kane (DDG-77), USS Frank E. Petersen Jr. (DDG-121), and USS Spruance (DDG-111), which are part of Destroyer Squadron 21.

Between 2005 and 2013, the group made five deployments to the U.S. Fifth Fleet supporting U.S. ground forces in Iraq, and Afghanistan. On 18 December 2011, strike group aircraft flew the final carrier-based air mission over Iraq, effectively ending U.S. naval support for Operation New Dawn.

In naval terminology, a destroyer is a fast, maneuverable, long-endurance warship intended to escortlarger vessels in a fleet, convoy, or carrier battle group and defend them against a wide range of general threats. They were conceived in the late 19th century as a defense against torpedo boats, and by the time of the Russo-Japanese War in 1904, these "torpedo boat destroyers" (TBDs) were "large, swift, and powerfully armed torpedo boats designed to destroy other torpedo boats". Although the term "destroyer" had been used interchangeably with "TBD" and "torpedo boat destroyer" by navies since 1892, the term "torpedo boat destroyer" had been generally shortened to simply "destroyer" by nearly all navies by the First World War.

Before World War II, destroyers were light vessels with little endurance for unattended ocean operations; typically, a number of destroyers and a single destroyer tender operated together. After the war, destroyers grew in size. The American Allen M. Sumner-class destroyers had a displacement of 2,200 tons, while the Arleigh Burke class has a displacement of up to 9,600 tons, a difference of nearly 340%. Moreover, the advent of guided missiles allowed destroyers to take on the surface-combatant roles previously filled by battleships and cruisers. This resulted in larger and more powerful guided missile destroyers more capable of independent operation.

Naval Station Everett (NAVSTA Everett) is a military installation located in the city of Everett, Washington, 25 miles (40 km) north of Seattle. The naval station, located on the city's waterfront on the northeastern end of Puget Sound, was designed as a homeport for a US Navy carrier strike group and opened in 1994. A separate Navy Support Complex is located in Smokey Point, 11 miles (18 km) north of Everett near Marysville, and houses a commissary, Navy Exchange, a college and other services.

NAVSTA Everett is home to seven guided-missile destroyers, a Coast Guard Keeper-class cutter USCGC Henry Blake, and a USCG Marine Protector-class patrol boat, USCGC Blue Shark. There are about 6,000 sailors and civil service persons assigned to commands located at Naval Station Everett. The Naval Station itself has about 350 sailors and civilians assigned.

USS Farragut (DDG-99) is an Arleigh Burke-class (Flight IIA) Aegis guided missile destroyer in the United States Navy. She is the fifth Navy ship named for Admiral David Farragut (1801–1870). Farragut's keel was laid down on 9 January 2004 at the Bath Iron Works in Bath, Maine. She was christened on 23 July 2005, with Senator Susan Collins of Maine as her sponsor. Farragut was commissioned on 10 June 2006 in Mayport, Florida.

Farragut is equipped with the "Smart Ship" data distribution and control system.

USS Theodore Roosevelt (CVN-71) is the fourth Nimitz-class, nuclear-powered, aircraft carrier in the United States Navy. She is named in honor of Theodore Roosevelt, the 26th president of the United States and a proponent of naval power. She is the fourth ship named in honor of Theodore Roosevelt, three bearing his full name and a fourth with just his last name. Another three U.S. Navy ships have "Roosevelt" in their names in honor of members of the Roosevelt family. This carrier's radio call sign is "Rough Rider", the nickname of President Roosevelt's volunteer cavalry unit during the Spanish–American War. She was launched in 1984, and saw her first action during the Gulf War in 1991. As of August 2024, she is deployed with Carrier Air Wing 11 and Carrier Strike Group 9, which includes the Ticonderoga-class cruiser USS Lake Erie, and the Arleigh Burke-class destroyers USS John S. McCain, USS Halsey, and USS Daniel Inouye.

Carrier Strike Group One (CSG-1 or CARSTRKGRU 1) is a U.S. Navy carrier strike group. USS Carl Vinson (CVN-70) is the strike group's current flagship, which currently consists of Carrier Air Wing 2, the Ticonderoga-class guided-missile cruiser USS Princeton and DESRON 1, which includes the Arleigh Burke class guided-missile destroyers USS Hopper, USS Kidd, USS Sterett and the USS William P. Lawrence.

Although the previous Carrier Strike Group One traced its history to Carrier Division 1, formed in 1930, the current Carrier Strike Group One was an entirely new naval formation when it was established in October 2009. During the relocation of its flagship Carl Vinson to its new home base in San Diego, California, it supported Operation Unified Response, providing humanitarian assistance following the 2010 Haiti earthquake. During its first overseas deployment in 2011, the body of Osama bin Laden was flown to the Carl Vinson for burial at sea. Carrier Strike Group One was the second U.S. Navy carrier force to participate in Operation Inherent Resolve.