The USS Abraham Lincoln is in the midst of a record-setting deployment, kept out of port for more than six months, as the carrier's crew faces morale and mental health concerns. The ship may break the record for the longest deployment away from home port for a US carrier since the Vietnam War.

That record was set just months ago by the USS Gerald R. Ford, which completed a 326-day deployment that included operations against Iran and Venezuela.

A wider pattern across the fleet

According to a CNN analysis of deployment announcements and the USNI News fleet tracker, this forms part of a broader pattern, with the US Navy increasingly exceeding its recommended deployment duration of seven months. Experts and former officials have warned that the trend could place greater stress on ships and crews, leading to burnout or pushing some sailors to leave the Navy altogether.

Conditions aboard the Lincoln

A crew member serving on the Lincoln, speaking to CNN, described morale on the ship as very low, saying they had repeatedly heard of suicidal ideation among fellow crew members. The same crew member described regular strain on essential amenities, with toilets and water fountains frequently out of service and hot water often unavailable.

"Everyday we wake up and listen to our Captain speak, we are desperately hoping and anxious for updates on our return," the crew member told CNN.

Other sailors described conditions unlike previous deployments, largely because combat operations have kept the carrier from making stops at friendly ports, calls that would normally allow for resupply and rest. Sailors and family members told CNN the ship has experienced intermittent food shortages, low supplies of hygiene items, and problems with the water system.

"You used to be able to go to the ship store and get as many items as you want, with every hygiene product consistently available," one sailor, who requested anonymity for fear of reprisal, told CNN. Purchases are now limited, and "hardly any hygiene products [are] readily available."

Overboard incidents

CNN previously reported that two sailors assigned to the Lincoln strike group had jumped overboard in recent months. Both were rescued alive, according to US officials. Others were reportedly prevented from jumping, according to the Navy Times and Stars and Stripes.

Navy response

The Navy said in a statement to CNN: "We have not observed an increase in suicidal ideations or attempts aboard the ship. We take every service member's well-being seriously and have religious, medical and mental health professionals available to assess and address concerns as they arise."

A US official added that the Navy does not believe there is a correlation between deployment length and thoughts of self-harm, and that man-overboard incidents are not unique to this fleet.

Political reaction

President Donald Trump appeared to address a question about the length of the Lincoln's deployment on Friday, telling reporters it had been "not nearly long enough."

The wife of one service member aboard the Lincoln, speaking to CNN's Jake Tapper on condition of anonymity, said the president doesn't think "before he talks," and urged both him and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth to show "some empathy." "Take some accountability for what's going on with your military, your ships, in your war. In your war. It's infuriating," she said.

Deployment lengths on the rise

The median length of US-based aircraft carrier deployments has steadily increased since 2020, according to data reviewed by CNN. The Navy's stated plan, according to Adm. Daryl Caudle, aims to provide predictable three-year cycles for sailors built around a seven-month, 210-day deployment. Between 2018 and 2022, most deployments stayed close to that target.

However, the Navy has routinely missed that mark since the October 2023 Hamas attacks against Israel triggered a series of extended deployments. Both the USS Gerald R. Ford and the USS Dwight D. Eisenhower saw their deployments extended in the aftermath, with the Ford returning home in January 2024 after 260 days, and the Eisenhower after 274 days in July 2024. Three separate carrier deployments beginning in 2024 exceeded 250 days.

In 2025, the strain on the carrier force increased further, with two deployments passing 270 days, including the Ford's post-Vietnam-era record of 326 days, beginning in June 2025. That deployment took the carrier from its homeport in Norfolk, Virginia, to Europe, then to the Caribbean, where its aircraft struck Venezuela during the raid that captured former leader Nicolás Maduro, and later to the Middle East, where it took part in Operation Epic Fury against Iran despite a major fire on board.

Wear on ships and crews

Experts told CNN that on extended missions such as those undertaken by the Ford and the Lincoln, components wear out, with repairs at sea often only a temporary fix. Other issues compound over time, including fraying arresting cables used to catch landing aircraft, and saltwater seepage into shipboard systems, increasing the risk of mishaps, sources said.

Burnout among crew members and their families is also a growing concern, according to experts and former officials. Retired Rear Adm. Bruce Gillingham, a former Navy Surgeon General during the Covid-19 pandemic, said one of the "critical factors" during extended pandemic-era deployments, when ships could not make port calls, was "how resilient the sailors and Marines were."

"This is not unprecedented," Gillingham said. "When you look at the history of the Navy, world events require that deployments be lengthened, and the sailors answer the call... The Navy plays the away game, that's the nature of the business, and it's very good at it. It doesn't mean that it doesn't put stress on the people and the ships."

Retention concerns

Retention of naval aviators and maintenance personnel has become a significant concern this year, according to sources familiar with internal Navy discussions. Earlier this year, Hegseth ordered a review of retention struggles among sailors assigned to Navy Strike Fighter Squadrons, according to a March memo obtained by CNN. The Navy is also offering flight officers and naval aviators bonuses worth tens of thousands of dollars annually to retain top talent.

The Lincoln's deployment remains ongoing nearly nine months after it left San Diego on 21 November. Most of its crew last touched land during a port call in Guam on 11 December. Although the Japan-based USS George Washington is en route to relieve the Lincoln of its blockade duties in the Persian Gulf, the Lincoln may still break the Ford's record on its journey home to California.

Strains on families

Family members of Lincoln sailors described further difficulties to CNN. Ashley T., the mother of a sailor aboard the ship, who asked that her surname be withheld to protect her son's identity, said care packages sometimes arrive months late or go missing entirely. "I understand they are in a combat zone, but if they aren't allowed any port calls, the least [the Navy] could do is make sure they are getting packages in a timely fashion," she said.

Another family member, speaking anonymously, shared photos of overflowing toilets in sewage-saturated restroom areas, an issue also reported aboard the Ford during its own deployment.

The spouse of a Lincoln service member told Tapper on Friday: "He is saying that it is the worst deployment that he's ever been on... He gets his job done. He comes home, and he lets it go at work. He does his best... but he's even said that he finds himself changing. He feels himself being angrier and more frustrated, and that's just very unlike him. So it's very hard to hear that as his wife when I can't do anything about it."

The conditions have prompted scrutiny from lawmakers including Democratic Senator Richard Blumenthal of Connecticut, who wrote to the Pentagon demanding answers on the crew's wellbeing.

Efforts to improve conditions

Leaders aboard the strike group's ships say they are working to address the strain. Capt. Casey Mahon, commander of the USS Frank E. Petersen, Jr., told CNN the combat conditions pose a "very stressful situation" for sailors. He said the ship holds group therapy and feedback sessions, and that leaders encourage lighter methods of stress relief, including ice cream socials and bulletin boards where sailors can share memes about their experiences.

Despite the challenges, sailors of the Lincoln strike group have launched approximately 10,000 aircraft flights supporting strikes on Iran and enforcing the US blockade of the country, according to US Central Command.

A model under scrutiny

Navy officials have increasingly questioned the current deployment model. The Navy's top enlisted sailor, Master Chief Petty Officer of the Navy John Perryman, recently criticised the existing cycle as a "conveyor belt that's very prescriptive," derived from a "peacetime mindset." "We're going to have to come up with a different force generation model," he said, discussing the Ford's 11-month deployment at a recent Military Officers Association of America event.

Part of the challenge stems from the finite size of the carrier fleet, the US operates 11 such ships, some ageing and awaiting replacement by new Ford-class carriers, with availability further limited by maintenance requirements and reactor refuelling schedules.

The new Ford-class carriers have also faced repeated delays. The USS John F. Kennedy, which began its final sea trials this week, is scheduled for delivery to the Navy in March 2027, nearly two years later than originally projected.

Recently announced changes to the next scheduled Ford-class carrier, the USS Doris Miller, could delay its construction further, experts told CNN. Trump directed the Navy to abandon plans to use an electromagnetic launch system on future Ford-class ships in favour of steam-powered catapults, as used on the older Nimitz-class carriers. According to Hudson Institute shipbuilding expert Bryan Clark, this will require the Miller to be redesigned, at a cost likely to run into the billions, and could delay the carrier, originally expected in service around 2034, "until the end of the next decade." Any such delay could force the Navy to extend future deployments further, or keep its ageing Nimitz-class carriers in service beyond their 50-year lifespan.

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