The USS Abraham Lincoln returned home to San Diego, California on Thursday after a 10-month deployment that the ship's commanding officer said saw its sailors respond with "honor, courage, and commitment."
The Lincoln is the flagship of a carrier strike group that saw eight suicide attempts among US sailors during its time at sea, according to the Navy. Its deployment included more than 260 continuous days without a port call, a record, according to the Pentagon.
"Lincoln nation conducted major combat operations, enforced naval blockade, and demonstrated the presence and power of the carrier strike group and multiple number fleets, all while keeping up unprecedented operational tempo," said Capt. Daniel J. Keeler.
The Lincoln's accomplishments included sinking 64 Iranian warships, destroying 21 anti-ship cruise missiles, executing 3,693 combat sorties, launching 450 Tomahawk land attack cruise missiles and firing 1.37 million pounds of ordnance against Iran, Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth said.
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Typically naval deployments are for between six and nine months but can be extended during times of conflict. Mental health issues on long deployments have long challenged the US Navy.
"For most of my sailors, this was their first time away from home, their first deployment, their first experience with combat. I understand the anxiety that might have caused, but I can tell you this. Our team of professionals on this ship led every single one of those sailors through that experience and a great majority responded like sailors always do--with honor, courage, and commitment," Keeler said.
In August, amid reports of low morale and supply shortages on board, President Donald Trump was asked whether he thought the Lincoln had been deployed too long. Trump responded: "No, no, no. Not nearly long enough."
Hegseth acknowledged some challenges on board, saying, "there wasn't an easy resupply."
The carrier's return comes at a crossroads in the US-Iran war, which has jolted global energy markets and become a political liability for Trump and fellow Republicans ahead of November midterm elections.
