War on Iran Stretches US Navy as Carrier Leaves Pacific

By Staff, Agencies

The USS George Washington is leaving the Pacific and is expected to replace the USS Abraham Lincoln in the Middle East, leaving the western Pacific temporarily without a US aircraft carrier as the war on Iran continues to strain US naval resources, according to military officials and analysts.

According to the Associated Press, the George Washington is expected to relieve the Lincoln, whose deployment has been extended beyond its planned May return to support war against Iran.

The prolonged deployment has also raised concerns over sailors’ mental health and supply shortages aboard the carrier.

The gap in the Pacific could be temporary if the US Navy sends another carrier to the region in the coming months. However, analysts say the extended war is already placing additional strain on American sailors.

Greg Poling, director of the Southeast Asia Program at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, told the Associated Press that the open-ended war on Iran is wearing down some US sailors, while the Trump administration has shifted attention toward the Western Hemisphere.

Poling said the administration had described the Pacific as its priority behind the Western Hemisphere, but is instead moving away from its stated goal of reducing US involvement in the Middle East.

He added that US allies in the Pacific are unsettled by the administration’s unpredictability, while Beijing benefits from Washington’s distraction and the growing frustration among its allies and partners.

Meanwhile, relatives of sailors aboard the USS Abraham Lincoln have voiced concerns over deteriorating mental health during the carrier’s extended nine-month deployment. Some sailors reportedly attempted to jump overboard.

The US Navy has acknowledged supply problems but rejected claims that the carrier, which has around 5,000 people aboard, is facing a mental health crisis.

US President Donald Trump dismissed concerns from sailors’ families and rejected suggestions that the deployment had gone on too long, saying it was “not nearly long enough.” He confirmed that another ship would replace the Lincoln but did not identify it.

The George Washington left a naval facility in Yokosuka, Japan, in May for a Pacific patrol and is now heading toward the Middle East, CBS News reported, citing a US official. The carrier was near Malaysia on Thursday and could reach the region in about nine days, according to BBC analysis.

Once in the Middle East, the George Washington will become the third US aircraft carrier in the region, alongside the USS George H.W. Bush, leaving the Pacific without an American aircraft carrier.

The Lincoln has been at sea since December 11, with its deployment originally scheduled to end in May, according to BBC Verify tracking data.

Conditions aboard the Lincoln reportedly include poor sanitation, limited port visits, broken plumbing, exhaustion and shortages of fresh food.

A sailor’s relative told the BBC that their family member had lost 65 pounds during the deployment and suffered exhaustion from constant noise and vibrations, while also confirming reports that sailors had attempted to jump overboard.