After commissioning,
Ross set sail for a Combat Systems Ship Qualification Trial, which lasted six weeks, and then sailed back to Pascagoula for three months for her Post Shakedown Availability (PSA). She was then returned to her homeport of
Portsmouth, Virginia, and completed the Basic Training Phase: Engineering Certification, CART II, TSTA I, and III, Cruise Missile Tactical Qualification, Final Evaluation Period (FEP), and Logistics Management Assessment.
Ross completed her Intermediate Training Phase and set sail early in 1999 as part of
Carrier Group 8, led by . The group sortied for a Joint Task Force Exercise to prepare for an upcoming six-month deployment set to commence on 26 March 1999. During this deployment to the
Mediterranean Sea and
Adriatic Sea Ross participated in
Operation Allied Force. On 22 September, she returned to
Naval Station Norfolk. On 15 May 2000, she set sail for Northern Europe in order to participate in the
Baltic Operations (BALTOPS) 2000. She served as the
flagship for the Commander of Carrier Group Eight, and together with the destroyer operated with more than 50 ships from the numerous European countries. During these exercises
Ross visited
Stockholm, Sweden, and
Kiel, Germany, before returning to the United States in late June. On 16 October 2001,
Ross was deployed to the Mediterranean Sea and
Persian Gulf in support of
Operation Enduring Freedom, Later in 2005,
Ross participated in UNITAS 47-06 in place of the
cruiser due to the damage to Pascagoula created by
Hurricane Katrina.
Ross enjoyed liberty in
Curaçao,
St. Maarten, and
Rio de Janeiro, while participating in the multi-ship exercise with naval forces from Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Spain, and Uruguay. During the return home,
Ross encountered heavy seas at high speeds resulting in a tear in her hull. The crew isolated her flooding and performed de-watering during the remainder of the journey up the Atlantic coast eventually arriving in Norfolk in time for
Thanksgiving. In 2006,
Ross returned from a six-month deployment to the Mediterranean Sea as part of
Standing NATO Maritime Group 1. She conducted over 850 vessel queries, commanded over 17 ships from various nations, performed over 40 helicopter landings and takeoffs and 41 port visits to six countries and 14 ports. From 1 May 2006 to 7 November 2006,
Ross traveled over . In
Alicante, Spain, in August 2006,
Ross became the group
flagship, embarking the American commander of the standing maritime group. Her mission was to perform as part of
Operation Active Endeavour; deterring terrorism,
smuggling and
human trafficking in the Mediterranean. In September 2014, responding to turmoil in
Ukraine, the US Navy announced that a guided missile destroyer had entered the
Black Sea in order to participate with Ukrainian ships in the naval exercise "Sea Breeze".
Ross "serves to demonstrate the United States' commitment to strengthening the collective security of NATO allies and partners in the region," the Navy said in a press release. In November 2014, three sailors from
Ross were attacked while ashore in the port of
Istanbul, apparently by members of the
Turkey Youth Union. In May 2015,
Ross was buzzed by a pair of Russian
Su-24 Fencers at a distance of while the ship was on-station in the Black Sea. Russian Federation State media
RIA Novosti quoted a military source, which claimed that
Ross had acted aggressively and was scared away by the bombers. The US Navy published a statement, denying the Russian claims and pointing out that the ship was in international waters and did not deviate from its operations. On 21 October 2015,
Ross intercepted a
Terrier missile as part of ASD-15 anti-ballistic missile testing in the North Sea.
Ross spent the summer of 2017 conducting
anti-submarine patrols around the
Norwegian Sea and the
Arctic Ocean. On 7 April 2017,
Ross and , from their positions in the Eastern Mediterranean,
fired a total of 59 Tomahawk missiles at specific military targets at the
Shayrat airfield in
Syria. The missile barrage was in response to the death of at least 80 civilians in the immediate aftermath of 4 April 2017,
Khan Shaykhun chemical attack in
Idlib province, an attack that the US government concluded was launched by the Syrian regime, from Shayrat. ,
David M. Friedman's remarks on USS Ross during its visit to the Israeli
Port of Ashdod, 10 October 2018 On 16 February 2018,
Ross joined in the
Black Sea for an "unspecified regional proactive presence mission". The move follows increased tensions between Russia and the U.S. after American federal prosecutors announced indictments against 13 Russian citizens for their alleged interference in the
2016 U.S. presidential campaign. In December 2019,
Ross arrived in
Odesa, Ukraine, on
Christmas Eve, part of its mission in the Black Sea.
Ross is the first U.S. vessel to stop in Odesa since the USS
Porter made a port call there in October. In 2020,
Ross participated in a
NATO task group deployment to the
Barents Sea above the
Arctic Circle, with and Norwegian frigate , to exercise
freedom of navigation near Russia. They were supported by a variety of aircraft. On 6 September 2022,
Ross departed
Rota and began her journey to
Norfolk for a scheduled port shift. She was relieved by . ==Upgrades==