ROCKLAND — The guided-missile cruiser USS Hue City (CG 66) will arrive in Rockland Harbor, Aug. 1, to visit the area and support the 71st Annual Maine Lobster Festival.

While in port through the weekend, the crew of roughly 300 will participate in the festivals’ annual parade and Maine Sea Goddess coronation ceremony, as well as community relations events and volunteer opportunities in the region. Hue City sailors will be able to enjoy the festival, explore the local area and sample the proudly-served variations of lobster for which the festival and area is famous.

The officers and crew will also welcome the general public aboard for guided tours, offered daily from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.

“There is a long-standing tradition of U.S. Navy ships visiting domestic ports like Rockland,” said Capt. Jake Douglas, Hue City commanding officer, in a news release written by Lt. j.g. Nicholas Vandiver, USS Hué City (CG 66) Public Affairs Officer.

“Whether it is for a Fleet Week or festival such as Lobster Fest, these opportunities afford the sailors the opportunity to give back to various communities around the country and for the local population to see what the U.S. Navy does.”

“It’s a special opportunity and privilege to be part of a team that brings a U.S. warship to ports all around the world,” said Lt. j.g. Jack McAleer, a native of Orono. “But that doesn’t compare to having the honor of bringing this ship to my home state. It’s pretty surreal.”

Commissioned on Sept. 14, 1991, Hue City is homported in Mayport, Fla. The ship is named for the Battle of Hue fought during the Tet Offensive of 1968 by the first and fifth U.S. Marine Regiments.

For more information on USS Hue City, see the ship’s website:
https://www.public.navy.mil/surflant/cg66/Pages/default.aspx .

For more information on the Ticonderoga-class cruiser see the U.S. Navy Fact File here:
http://www.navy.mil/navydata/fact_display.asp?cid=4200&tid=800&ct=4