Aaron Parnas – MTN Aug 14, 2026
Since MeidasTouch began reporting on conditions aboard the USS Abraham Lincoln, messages have poured in to MeidasTouch from military families and service members across multiple ships and even multiple branches. Taken together, they paint a picture of a crisis that extends well beyond a single carrier. All sources below are being kept anonymous to protect them and their loved ones from retaliation.
“They are not making anything up”
One active-duty service member currently deployed alongside the Lincoln reached out to MeidasTouch to confirm that what’s being reported is real, and that it isn’t isolated to the Lincoln alone.
“They are not making anything up on the Lincoln,” the service member wrote. “We have it bad as well, but not quite as bad as them yet. It’s only month 5 going on 6 for us, but eventually it will be bad. We have not seen land since being out here due to the Iran conflict.”
Human waste, no showers, no supplies
One parent whose son recently returned from eleven months aboard the Lincoln, after finishing five years with an F/A-18 fire squadron known as the “Top Hatters,” described conditions that had deteriorated badly by the time he got off the ship.
Early in the deployment, the ship’s water system went down entirely, leaving sailors unable to shower or wash their clothes. When the system was eventually restored, showers had to be tightly rationed. Supplies ran low repeatedly, made worse when resupply ships were unable to bring materials back to the carrier. By the time this sailor left the ship, the parent said, toilets had backed up and overflowed, leaving roughly half a foot of human waste across restroom floors used by around 200 sailors at any given time.
No food, water, or soap for 136 days
A separate message came from someone whose brother’s fiancée serves aboard the USS George H.W. Bush, a different carrier than the Lincoln. She was recently back in the U.S. for a family emergency and was able to describe conditions directly.
“They have virtually no food, water, or soap,” the message relayed. “They’ve been out at sea for 136 days with no end in sight. Morale is low and everyone is miserable. It’s heartbreaking.”
“Please help him, he says he’s tired, hungry, and scared”
Not every account involves a ship. One message described a son currently deployed to Kuwait, on land, whose mental health has deteriorated severely.
“I know you’re being bombarded, and I hope my message and audio reach your eyes and ears, but what is being said is true, however not only on the sea but land,” the message read. “My son is in Kuwait, and he is in extreme poor health. His entire mental has been destroyed, and all he wants to do is come home to his room and his dogs. Please help him. He says he’s tired, hungry, and scared.”
“He doesn’t care about his people”
Finally, a wife of a service member currently aboard the Lincoln wrote to MeidasTouch to say her husband, who has been following the coverage of conditions on the ship, told her they “desperately need more people to speak up about what is happening.”
She said that when sailors ask their commanding officer for updates, they’ve been told not to worry about updates and to “just worry about today,” and that the crew is exhausted, getting no days off, and running on only a few hours of sleep. Her husband also raised serious concerns about leadership aboard the ship, telling her bluntly that “he doesn’t care about his people.” She said sailors with more than 20 years of service are calling this the worst deployment they’ve ever experienced.
“I am sharing this because these sailors need someone to speak for them,” she wrote. “They are exhausted and feel like they are not being heard, and they desperately need help.”
The pattern is clear
Taken together, alongside the reporting already out from Military Times, Stars and Stripes, and MS NOW, a consistent pattern emerges across multiple ships, multiple branches, and even service members on land: exhausted troops, failing infrastructure, dwindling supplies, no end date, and leadership that families say is not listening.