WASHINGTON — The USS George Washington has arrived in the Arabian Sea to relieve the USS Abraham Lincoln from the longest American naval deployment since the Cold War.
US Central Command confirmed that the Washington, which is typically based near Japan, arrived in the Middle East on Wednesday.
The Lincoln and its crew of 5,000 will now head home to San Diego after its grueling nearly nine-month deployment that saw reports of weary sailors attempting to jump overboard.
The nuclear-powered Nimitz-class aircraft carrier’s deployment had been extended multiple times because of the Iran war.
During the over 250-day deployment, sailors onboard the nuclear-powered aircraft carrier were forced to grapple with mental health challenges and dwindling supplies such as food and hygiene products.
The supply crunch is largely believed to have stemmed from Iran blowing up a Navy base in Bahrain that had been an important supply hub for the vessel.
Adm. Brad Cooper, the head of CENTCOM, had visited the aircraft carrier on Saturday and conceded that the sailors on board were “tired.”
“Godspeed and enjoy the well-deserved reunion soon,” he wrote in an opinion piece for the Wall Street Journal after the visit.
Democrats and other critics of President Trump had highlighted the plight of the sailors aboard the USS Abraham Lincoln
At the moment, the Navy is thought to have some 20 warships in the Middle East; aircraft carrier strike groups, including the USS George HW Bush, multiple destroyers and an amphibious ready group.
Those vessels have been projecting power in the region, and some of them have been helping to enforce Trump’s blockade on Iran.
