The aircraft carrier USS Theodore Roosevelt left San Diego Sunday on deployment to the Middle East, a mission that might turn out to be longer than normal because the Navy needs more ships.
“In the short term, until I can grow the Navy we need, I hate to admit it, but longer deployments are going to be probably part of that,” Chief of Naval Operations Daryl Caudle said during a town hall meeting at Fort Meade in Maryland in late August.
Caudle’s remarks came amid growing concerns about the USS Abraham Lincoln, a carrier that left San Diego in November on a deployment that was expected to last six to seven months, which is common. The ship is still at sea and isn’t scheduled to return to San Diego until early October. The roughly 10 ½-month trip will go down as one of the longest in naval history.
The mission was extended largely because the Lincoln and its escort ships played a lead role in the U.S. conflict with Iran and subsequent service enforcing a naval blockade in the Straight of Hormuz. During the conflict, Iran largely destroyed a key U.S. naval logistics and supply depot in Bahrain, which made it harder and more time-consuming to get food and supplies to the Lincoln Carrier Strike Group.
Reports of deteriorating conditions and worsening mental health of those aboard the ship grew.
At one point, the Lincoln, which has about 5,000 crew members, went 265 straight days without a port call. At a town hall meeting at Marine Corps Air Station North Island in August, people with loved ones on the carrier reportedly told Navy leaders that the isolation cultivated loneliness and stress among some of the crew.
Eight sailors who were part of the Lincoln strike group attempted to take their lives during its long deployment, Navy officials have said.
Navy leaders said they have taken steps to prepare the Roosevelt for its deployment to avoid similar problems. That includes loading the ship with extra food and supplies, and enhancing entertainment options for sailors, including additional exercise equipment and holiday goodies.
The Navy has also pledged to better communicate with families back home.
The Lincoln was eventually relieved in the Middle East by another ship — the USS George Washington, based in Japan — but the struggle to call up another carrier reflected a well-known problem.
A 2025 report by the U.S. Government Accountability Office says the Navy has failed to increase the number of ships over the past 20 years, despite a doubling of its budget in that area. The agency attributed the problem to overly optimistic building plans and the Navy’s tendency to start building ships before it finalizes critical ship designs — a tendency that has resulted in cost and schedule overruns.
The Navy’s continued reliance on its aging fleet has meant more time spent maintaining ships, a reality also dogged by insufficient shipyard capacity and a shortage of skilled workers, the GAO has found.
