USS Abraham Lincoln Deployment on Track to be 2nd Longest Since Vietnam War
The crew of USS Abraham Lincoln (CVN-72) is weeks away from wrapping a deployment that could be the second longest since the end of the Cold War, according to the USNI News carrier database. As of Tuesday, Lincoln, its escorts and the embarked Carrier Air Wing 9 were sailing in the Indian Ocean on the strike group’s return journey to the West Coast and were still a month or more away from home. Based on the time it took the last three carrier strike groups to sail from the Middle East to California, the strike group might not arrive until
A sailor stands watch aboard Nimitz-class aircraft carrier USS Abraham Lincoln (CVN-72), Aug. 17, 2026. US Navy photo The crew of USS Abraham Lincoln (CVN-72) is weeks away from wrapping a deployment that could be the second longest since the end of the Cold War, according to the USNI News carrier database.
As of Tuesday, Lincoln, its escorts and the embarked Carrier Air Wing 9 were sailing in the Indian Ocean on the strike group’s return journey to the West Coast and were still a month or more away from home. Based on the time it took the last three carrier strike groups to sail from the Middle East to California, the strike group might not arrive until late September or early October.
On Sept. 12, Lincoln will have been deployed for 295 days to be the second-longest carrier deployment since the end of the Cold War. The deployment is second only to the deployment of USS Gerald R. Ford (CVN-78) that ended in May. The 326-day Ford Carrier Strike Group deployment stretched from the North Atlantic to the Caribbean, the Mediterranean Sea and the Red Sea. In contrast, Lincoln spent almost seven months on station in the Arabian Sea supporting U.S. operations against Iran with no announced port calls to maintain two carriers in the region.
Without access to Middle East logistics hubs, the Navy stretched its supply lines thousands of miles to support Lincoln, carrier USS George H.W. Bush (CVN-77) and other ships operating in the region. The difficulty in the early days of the resupply mission and extensions prompted complaints from family members about conditions on the ship. Navy leadership addressed the concerns earlier this month.
“Deployments are hard. Combat operations make them harder. War is hell and normal routines are disrupted,” reads a statement from Acting Secretary of the Navy Hung Cao. “One of the hardest aspects about warfighting beyond knowingly placing our service members in harm’s way is that even with the best planning and communication, change and uncertainty will always be in play. Our success depends on how we adapt.”
Lincoln’s return is the latest is a continued trend in strike group deployments that have averaged eight and half months since the Hamas attack on Oct. 7, 2023. Navy leaders have said the extended deployments tax not only the crews while on deployments but also add months to maintenance availabilities when the ships return.
Ahead of the strike group’s return, Reuters cited officials in Thailand who said the carrier was expected to pull into Eastern Thailand for a port visit.
“The stop is a routine port visit intended to allow personnel to rest and recuperate … as well as to receive logistical support,” a Thai Navy spokesperson told the newswire on Tuesday.
U.S. carriers previously made port calls at the deep-draft port of Laem Chabang.
