HONG KONG — The U.S. aircraft carrier USS Kitty Hawk sailed into Hong Kong today on its final away-from-home port call five months after being turned away by China.

"We're delighted to be back," said the ship's commander, Rear Adm. Richard Wren. But he said the U.S. was still "not completely satisfied" with China's explanation of why the carrier was denied entry in November.

"We were never provided a concise explanation," he said.

The Kitty Hawk, with about 5,000 sailors on board, was joined by one cruiser and three destroyers — the USS Shiloh, USS Curtis Wilbur, USS Stethem and USS Lassen — on its five-day port call.

The 47-year-old ship, based in the Japanese port of Yokosuka, is the only U.S. aircraft carrier based outside the United States. The diesel-powered vessel is to return to the U.S. in late May for decommissioning and will be replaced by the nuclear-powered USS George Washington.

The carrier attempted to make a long-scheduled port call in Hong Kong last Thanksgiving, but was told before its arrival that it had not obtained clearance from Beijing. The thousands of sailors on board were unable to meet their families and friends who had flown to the city to spend the holiday with them.

Beijing later said it would allow the carrier to enter Hong Kong on humanitarian grounds, but the decision came as the carrier was already leaving the area.

The incident damaged relations between the U.S. and Chinese militaries. The top U.S. commander in the Asia-Pacific, Adm. Timothy Keating, said Beijing's behavior was unacceptable, while Beijing said the U.S. military had not followed correct procedures.

Some analysts suggested China was retaliating for a decision by Congress to award exiled Tibetan Buddhist leader the Dalai Lama its highest civilian honor.

Although the West views the Dalai Lama as a figure of moral authority, Beijing has accused the Nobel Peace Prize laureate of seeking to split Tibet from the rest of China and of instigating anti-government protests in the Himalayan region last month.

Since the rebuff of the Kitty Hawk, the USS Blue Ridge visited Hong Kong in late January and the USS Nimitz strike group in early April.