The US Navy is applying lessons from USS Abraham Lincoln’s tough deployment to another aircraft carrier preparing to head out

Sep 09, 2026 12:55 AM - 6 days ago 6

The US Navy USS Theodore Roosevelt craft bearer is seen successful tropical bluish waters.

The US Navy said it's maximizing supplies and nutrient connected different bearer readying to deploy. US Navy photograph by Mass Communications Specialist First Class Luke McCall

The US Navy's adjacent craft bearer group to deploy will beryllium carrying other supplies truthful it tin stay self-sufficient for longer, apical work officials said connected Tuesday, a move intended to reside logistics issues that person surfaced connected different ships during the Iran war.

USS Theodore Roosevelt is preparing to depart from its location larboard of San Diego successful the coming weeks. Navy activity said the craft bearer is incorporating lessons learned from others that participated successful combat operations against Iran this year.

Adm. Daryl Caudle, the main of naval operations, said the Roosevelt is "putting those lessons into action" utilizing what the Navy learned from craft carriers USS Abraham Lincoln and USS Gerald R. Ford.

"That starts pinch logistics," Caudle said successful a video address, explaining that "Roosevelt is maximizing its loadout of food, unit products, and hygiene items earlier getting underway."

Speaking adjacent to him successful the video, Master Chief Petty Officer of the Navy John Perryman said that the vessel's unit "is converting disposable spaces into further storage, building the expertise to stay self-sufficient for longer periods, particularly erstwhile resupply whitethorn beryllium difficult."

Both the Ford and Lincoln endured lengthy, extended deployments successful the Middle East, supporting combat operations against Iran. Ford spent a post-Cold War record-breaking 326 days astatine sea; Lincoln, already astatine much than 280 days, is still connected its measurement location aft a extremity successful Thailand.

US Navy USS Abraham Lincoln craft bearer sails successful bluish h2o upon presence to Thailand.

The USS Abraham Lincoln craft bearer departed Thailand connected Sunday aft 5 days successful port.  Thananuwat Srirasant/Getty Images

Reports emerged past period detailing proviso issues aboard Lincoln, pinch families expressing interest complete the surviving conditions and the well-being of the crew, immoderate 5,000 sailors and Marines. Multiple reports indicated that cardinal logistics centers had been affected by the war, straining Navy crews. Democratic lawmakers person pressed the Pentagon for answers.

While peacetime bearer deployments whitethorn beryllium six aliases 7 months, demands tin beryllium higher during periods of conflict. Roosevelt, which is expected to sail into the Middle East, could acquisition a lengthy deployment arsenic the US-Iran warfare shows nary extremity successful sight.

Caudle said successful the video that the Navy is "also focused connected value of life. That intends caller intermezo instrumentality connected the messiness decks, much durable fittingness equipment, spare cardio machines fresh for our placement, and moreover vacation materials purchased up of time."

He added that location are besides efforts underway to supply families pinch "reliable, accordant connection passim the deployment." These were immoderate complaints, particularly during the Lincoln's deployment, that had a reported effect connected unit morale.

The Navy has astir 20 warships successful the Middle East, including 2 craft bearer onslaught groups and an amphibious fresh group. These vessels person carried retired the US military's blockade of Iran's ports, which began successful April, among different missions. US forces person restricted the transition of Iranian commercialized vessels, turning them distant from port.

In immoderate instances while enforcing these navigation restrictions, the Navy has abnormal non-compliant vessels, shooting retired the engines and rudders of Iranian boats that person ignored warnings. Navy warships person besides been progressive successful removing Iranian mines placed successful and astir the Strait of Hormuz.

The US warfare pinch Iran is successful its sixth month, and some sides proceed to waste and acquisition strikes. On Tuesday, Iranian-backed Houthi rebels successful Yemen launched drone and rocket attacks connected aggregate sites successful Saudi Arabia, including lipid facilities, sparking caller concerns that the conflict could grow further crossed the Middle East.

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Jake Epstein is simply a defense analogous successful London for Business Insider, covering the US military, NATO, and European security, arsenic good arsenic emerging tech successful warfare.Jake has revenge stories from conflict zones in Ukraine and the Middle East, wherever he embedded with a US craft carrier on a combat deployment successful the Red Sea. Jake has reported extensively connected NATO operations crossed Europe, including from aboard an AWACS surveillance plane along the Russian border, an RAF Voyager tanker refueling combatant jets complete the Baltic Sea, and a Dutch helicopter flying to a warship supra the Arctic Circle.

Chris Panella is simply a defense newsman for Business Insider. He covers technological transformations successful the US subject pinch focuses connected US subject modernization, US Army transformation, and emerging technologies for illustration artificial intelligence and drones. Globally, Panella reports connected China's subject and Taiwan. Panella has embedded pinch the Army successful Alaska, interviewed typical operators learning to alert drones, and flown pinch US Coast Guard helicopters practicing supplier interdictions. If you person a extremity related to these areas aliases broader defense coverage, Panella tin beryllium reached at [email protected] or connected Signal astatine cpanella.85.

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