USS Lincoln Returns to San Diego After 322-Day Deployment
The USS Abraham Lincoln returned to San Diego after a 322-day deployment that included 265 consecutive days at sea supporting the war on Iran. Its homecoming…
The USS Lincoln returned to San Diego on Thursday after a deployment that included a record 265 consecutive days at sea supporting the US-Israel war on Iran. The homecoming brought sailors back to family and friends, following months of reports about shortages and deteriorating conditions aboard the carrier.
The aircraft carrier docked at Naval Air Station North Island after 322 days deployed, according to Al Jazeera. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth had visited the ship on Wednesday and announced that its crew would receive the Presidential Unit Citation.
It was a long wait.
The deployment drew public attention as reports described stress among crew members, food and hygiene-product shortages, and concerns about mental health. The Navy initially played down problems aboard the carrier, but later acknowledged that some issues had occurred.
Reports of strain during deployment
The Navy told lawmakers that eight sailors attempted suicide during the record-setting deployment, NPR reported. The figure covered a strike group of 6,000 sailors over 10 months; experts cited by NPR said the number was low for a group of that size.
In August, acting Navy Secretary Hung Cao said combat operations had limited opportunities to resupply the ship. Meal options were reduced from two to one for a short time, he said in a letter to a Democratic lawmaker seeking information. Cao said the crew still received four nutritionally balanced meals daily.
Al Jazeera reported that sailors returning home spoke of looking forward to fresh meals and time with family. Alma Solano Velez said her husband had shared a list of foods he had been craving during the deployment, including oxtail, barbecue chicken, broccoli and shrimp empanadas. She said he had also told her about “the lack of food and showers.”
The return has a direct effect on the sailors’ families, who spent months waiting for the carrier to come home. It also brings renewed attention to the pressures of extended deployments, including the reported shortages and mental health concerns that emerged while the Lincoln was at sea.
Hegseth praises crew, cites combat missions
Hegseth pushed back against criticism that the ship had become “a symbol of dysfunction or a symbol of low morale or a symbol of a failed mission,” according to NPR. He told sailors that they had adapted, remained resilient and completed the mission. He also said President Donald Trump had tracked their activities and was proud of their work.
The citation read to the crew listed 3,693 combat missions by the Lincoln and its strike group. It also credited them with delivering 1.37 million pounds of ordnance, launching 450 Tomahawk cruise missiles and shooting down 77 one-way attack drones.
The same account said the group sank 64 Iranian warships and destroyed 21 anti-ship cruise missiles, while defending against four fast-attack craft and explosive-carrying ships.
The Lincoln had left San Diego in November and reached the Middle East in January. It remained there until August, when the USS George Washington relieved it, according to The Guardian. The crew also stopped in Thailand early last month during the journey home, NPR reported.
For sailors arriving in San Diego, the immediate next step was a reunion. Abel Ramirez, 20, told The Associated Press that his parents had driven from Texas to meet him. “There was a certain point when I never thought I would come off,” he said.
Source: npr.org
