File Photo: Sailors and marines line the deck of aircraft carrier USS Abraham Lincoln (CVN-72) as it deploys from San Diego. AP
The George Washington left port in Da Nang, Vietnam, last week, according to a Navy statement. The carrier, accompanied by a cruiser and a destroyer, has since been spotted crossing the Singapore Strait.
A Navy official, who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss sensitive ship movements, confirmed that the George Washington was in the Strait of Malacca, which connects the Pacific and Indian oceans. The carrier is now on course for the Indian Ocean. The Wall Street Journal previously reported that it would replace the Lincoln.
The Lincoln is one of two US aircraft carriers currently stationed in the Middle East as the conflict continues and the US Navy imposes a blockade on Iranian ports in the Strait of Hormuz, a critical waterway for global oil and natural gas supplies.
The carrier deployed from San Diego on November 21 and arrived in the region in January, ahead of the launch of the war against Iran on February 28.
The Navy has acknowledged that the conflict created a “highly contested environment where traditional supply hubs in the Middle East were disrupted by combat actions”. The disruption, it said, led to shortages and a loss of mail aboard the carrier.
“Leadership prioritized mission-critical supplies: first food, then hygiene items, then mail,” the Navy said in a statement, adding that sailors aboard the ship now have access to clean water and “healthy meal options.”
Several Democratic lawmakers have called for investigations, more information and greater transparency over conditions aboard the Lincoln.
“The Lincoln’s prolonged deployment is especially significant because it is occurring in the context of continuing military operations against Iran and the possibility that substantial US naval forces will be required in the region for an extended period,” Connecticut Senator Richard Blumenthal wrote in a letter to Navy leadership.
Navy leaders, including acting Secretary Hung Cao, held a tense town hall last week for families of Lincoln sailors. Commanders of the Navy's air and surface forces promised to do everything they could to relieve the carrier, according to MS Now, which first reported on the meeting.
When reports of food shortages aboard the ship surfaced in April, the Navy pushed back, calling them “false.”
The Lincoln's more than 240 consecutive days at sea differs from the USS Gerald R. Ford's 11-month deployment earlier this year, the longest US aircraft carrier deployment since the Vietnam War. The Ford made multiple port calls during its mission.
*This story was edited by Ahram Online.
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