USS Chancellorsville set to depart San Diego

SAN DIEGO (KUSI) – The 567-foot guided-missile cruiser USS Chancellorsville is set to depart San Diego Thursday morning.

The ship and its crew of 400 sailors will make their way to their new home port of Yokosuka, Japan.

The Chancellorsville also recently underwent a new modernization program, arming itself with the most advanced air and missile defense system in the Navy. Transfer plans for the cruiser were first announced in January, as part of the Navy’s plan to house its most modern ships in Asia.

“It is Navy policy to forward deploy our most capable ships and there is no ship more capable than Chancellorsville,” said Capt. Curt Renshaw, commanding officer of the Chancellorsville.

The ship, named for the Civil War-era Battle of Chancellorsville, is one of a select few Navy vessels to be named after a Confederacy-won battle.