USS Abraham Lincoln<\/p>\n
The United States Navy’s USS Abraham Lincoln<\/em> (CVN-72) has been ordered<\/a> to head to the Middle East in response to escalating tensions between Washington and Tehran. CVN-72, the fifth Nimitz-<\/em>class nuclear-powered supercarrier, has been operating in the South China Sea and last week conducted live-fire exercises and a replenishment-at-sea as part of its ongoing routine operations.<\/p>\n As previously reported<\/a>, USS Abraham Lincoln<\/em> departed San Diego in late November 2025 with almost no fanfare. Nor did the Department of Defense announce where CVN-72 would be deployed. There was speculation that the carrier would be deployed to either the Indo-Pacific or the Middle East, the regions where USS Nimitz <\/em>(CVN-68) had operated for much of last fall until her final deployment was completed just before the Christmas holiday.<\/p>\n CVN-68 returned home to Naval Base Kitsap in Bremerton, Wash., in early December, concluding what has been confirmed to be the 50-year-old warship’s final deployment.<\/p>\n It will take about a week for the USS Abraham Lincoln<\/em> Carrier Strike Group to transit from the Indo-Pacific to the Middle East. The CSG consists of the supercarrier, with the embarked Carrier Air Wing 9 operating F\/A\u201118E\/F Super Hornets, EA\u201118G Growlers, E\u20112D Advanced Hawkeyes, and MH\u201160R\/S Seahawks. The surface combatant element includes the Arleigh Burke<\/em>\u2011class guided\u2011missile destroyers USS Spruance<\/em> (DDG 111), USS Michael Murphy<\/em> (DDG-112), and USS Frank E. Petersen Jr<\/em>. (DDG-121). A U.S. Navy fast-attack, nuclear-powered submarine typically operates with a CSG, but its identity usually is not disclosed for operational security.<\/p>\n “While a carrier is not essential for offensive operations, its presence in the Middle East would send a clear signal of deterrence and preparedness to both allies and adversaries,” Army Recognition explained<\/a>.<\/p>\n Another Arleigh Burke<\/em>-class guided-missile destroyer, USS Roosevelt<\/em> (DDG-80), transited the Persian\/Arabian Gulf<\/a> and is now operating within the United States Central Command area of responsibility.<\/p>\n The United States Navy had maintained a nearly consistent carrier presence in the Middle East following the outbreak of hostilities between Israel and Hamas in October 2023 until last September, when USS Nimitz<\/em> departed the region as the Pentagon refocused on operations in the Caribbean to confront the regime of now deposed Venezuelan strongman Nicol\u00e1s Maduro.<\/p>\n The redeployment of CVN-72 from the South China Sea to the Middle East<\/a> will leave the U.S. Navy spread thin, notably in the Indo-Pacific.<\/p>\n The U.S. Navy’s only forward-deployed supercarrier, the USS George Washington<\/em> (CVN-75), returned to her homeport of Yokosuka, Japan, and is now undergoing maintenance that will sideline that carrier until at least summer. USS Carl Vinson<\/em> (CVN-70) returned to Naval Air Station North Island, San Diego, in August, following a nine-month deployment to the Indo-Pacific, where she conducted operations in the 3rd, 5th, and 7th Fleet areas. CVN-70 also won’t be able to deploy for several more months.<\/p>\n The U.S. Navy’s second-oldest Nimitz<\/em>-class supercarrier, USS Dwight D. Eisenhower<\/em> (CVN-69), or USS George H.W. Bush<\/em> (CVN-78), the newest and final flattop of the Nimitz<\/em> class, each departed Norfolk, Va., but are expected to remain in the region, likely to take over for USS Gerald R. Ford<\/em> (CVN-78), which has been operating<\/a> in the Caribbean since last fall as part of the U.S. military buildup. CVN-78 departed Norfolk in May and has seen her deployment extended, and it is now nearly as long as her 2023-2024 deployment, where she spent a total of 239 days at sea.<\/p>\n USS Theodore Roosevelt<\/em> (CVN-71), which departed San Diego in November, will likely assume operations in the eastern Pacific from CVN-72, underscoring the balancing act of carrier deployments. The situation will continue throughout 2026 and into next year, as USS Nimitz <\/em>will make her final journey to Norfolk for decommissioning this spring, followed by her recycling.<\/p>\n The second Ford<\/em>-class carrier, the future USS John F. Kennedy<\/em> (CVN-79), is running behind schedule<\/a> and won’t be commissioned until March 2027, meaning her first deployment will not be until the end of next year, or more likely sometime in 2028.<\/p>\n Even as the Pentagon has pivoted toward renewed great-power competition in the Indo-Pacific, as China has undergone a significant naval buildup and now operates three conventionally powered aircraft carriers, the ongoing crisis in the Middle East has shown that the U.S. can’t ignore the region.<\/p>\nBack To The Middle East<\/strong><\/h2>\n
Multiple Crisis, Too Few Carriers<\/strong><\/h2>\n