Navy Chief Petty Officer Susan M. Ayer, daughter of Anita and Paul E. Ayer of Livermore, is participating in Summer Pulse ’04, the Navy’s first exercise of its new operational construct, the Fleet Response Plan.

Seven carrier strike groups are deployed in five theaters with other U.S., allied and coalition military forces demonstrating the ability to provide credible combat power across the globe.

During the three-month exercise, the Kitty Hawk, Enterprise, John F. Kennedy, George Washington, John C. Stennis, Harry S. Truman and Ronald Reagan will demonstrate the swift presence the U.S. can bring to a fight and highlight the flexibility to adapt to a changing security environment.

The Navy will conduct operations in every U.S. combatant command’s area of operations to include joint military exercises, multinational exercises, significant Navy training and port visits. Nearly 40,000 sailors will take part.

Ayer is one of more than 380 crew members assigned to the guided-missile destroyer USS Bulkeley, homeported in Norfolk, Va. Ayer joined the Navy in August 1987.

USS Bulkeley is a multi-mission, anti-submarine warfare and anti-surface combatant. The combat systems center around the multi-phased radar and also use an advanced anti-submarine warfare system and Tomahawk and advanced anti-aircraft missiles.