Virginia Beach, Va. — Navy Lt. Steve Wynfield didn't get to celebrate his first wedding anniversary Oct. 7. He was dropping bombs on Afghanistan in the first wave of U.S. military strikes.
Wynfield finally got to share an anniversary kiss with his wife Friday as he and 67 other members of the air wing from the USS Enterprise made their belated return to Oceana Naval Air Station. The aircraft carrier was scheduled to arrive Saturday at Norfolk Naval Station.
Lt. Cmdr Jerry Feagles holds his daughter, Cailin, 3, during a homecoming for the "Shadowhawks" of Electric Attack Squadron 141. The VAQ 141 squadron returned home after spending seven months at sea aboard the aircraft carrier USS Enterprise which was stationed in the Northern Arabian Sea, recently supporting Operation Enduring Freedom.
"It's incredible, it's amazing to be back," the radar intercept officer from Patuxent River, Md., said after greeting his wife, Holly, with a hug, a kiss and a red rose. "I don't know what to expect."
When Wynfield, 30, left 6 1/2 months ago for a routine deployment, the world was at relative peace.
After the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks, the Enterprise went from preparing to come home to leading the initial strikes against Afghanistan, extending the ship's deployment by about two weeks.
Holly Wynfield, 25, spent her anniversary with friends. She was joined Friday by hundreds of other relatives, friends and colleagues waiting in sunshine and a brisk breeze for the aviators' return.
Many carried American flags, "Welcome Home" signs or red, white and blue balloons.
Holly Wynfield, a first lieutenant in the Air Force, said her husband's return was tinged with anxiety because he could be recalled to duty at any time.
"You have to be flexible. You have to be able to deal with stress. I'm just glad that he's here and he's safe," Wynfield said.
Also Friday, four E-2C Hawkeye early warning aircraft and two C-2 Greyhound cargo aircraft from the Enterprise air wing returned to Norfolk Naval Station. Fourteen other aircraft flew home to bases in Jacksonville, Fla. and Whidbey Island, Wash.
The Oceana crowd erupted in cheers as 22 two-seat F-14 Tomcat fighter jets flew overhead in formation. About an hour later, 24 single-seat F-A 18 Hornets returned to the air station.
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