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▲ USS Abraham Lincoln
As the limit reached by crew members of the US nuclear-powered aircraft carrier USS Abraham Lincoln, stationed off the coast of Iran for nine months, becomes known, the issue is spilling over into US politics.
This is because it is by no means someone else's story, not only for the families of the Lincoln's crew members, but also for US military personnel and their families deployed around the world.
The USS Lincoln departed its home port in San Diego, US, on November 21 of last year with 5,000 crew members on board.
En route to the Middle East, it made a stop in Guam in December and stayed at sea for 208 consecutive days until briefly stopping in Oman on July 7 of this year.
This is an unprecedented long-term mission in modern naval history.
Originally scheduled to finish operations and return in May, its return was delayed twice as the war prolonged.
Consequently, concerns began to flare up over lowered morale, exhaustion, and mental health issues among the crew due to the long-term stay at sea.
Eventually, earlier this month, a sailor belonging to the carrier air wing jumped from the ship into the sea.
An official told CNN that the date of the jump was the 3rd.
The exact reason for the jump has not been confirmed, and at the time, the sailor was wearing a life vest and was rescued safely within an hour.
In a statement sent to CNN on the 13th (local time), the US Navy drew a line, stating, "We have not observed an increase in suicidal thoughts or attempts within the ship," and that the delayed return of the USS Lincoln and the sailor's jump were unrelated, but it appears there were multiple other attempts to jump overboard from the Lincoln besides this one.
The US military newspaper Stars and Stripes also reported that sailors are "suffering from fatigue and low morale, which includes reports of suicidal ideation and at least one instance where a crew member was prevented from jumping into the sea."
The US military specialty publication Navy Times reported an interview with a wife whose husband, a sailor on the USS Lincoln, tried to jump, and another case where a fellow sailor prevented someone from jumping.
It was found that the living standards of the crew deteriorated sharply as supply deliveries became difficult due to the prolonged maritime operations.
Because Iran blockaded the Strait of Hormuz, supplies from the US 5th Fleet base in Bahrain faced disruptions in arriving.
At a meeting held in San Diego on the 6th between Navy leadership and families of the USS Lincoln crew, complaints poured out regarding shortages of supplies and food, water contamination, and poor sanitation and ventilation facilities, along with crew burnout.
Representative Mike Levin (Democrat, California) stated at the meeting that issues were raised regarding "moldy showers, broken toilets, hot water not working for weeks, and meals reduced to half a cup of rice and two tortillas."
Vice Admiral Douglas Verissimo explained to the crew families that it was due to "the logistics situation being heavily contested (by Iran) and the supply lines being terribly difficult and long," adding, "Everyone is working together under extremely difficult circumstances."
As the USS Lincoln issue came to the surface, Democrats are turning their fire on Commander-in-Chief President Donald Trump and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, showing signs of bringing the matter to Washington, DC.
Senator Ruben Gallego (Democrat, Arizona) stated that a bipartisan delegation of lawmakers is pushing for an "oversight visit" to visit the USS Lincoln.
Representative Seth Moulton (Democrat, Massachusetts), a member of the House Armed Services Committee, pointed out that the problems are "a president who has mocked service members experiencing mental health issues" and "a defense secretary more focused on testosterone testing than protecting the lives of service members," vowing an investigation at the Armed Services Committee level.
Senator Richard Blumenthal (Democrat, Connecticut), a member of the Senate Armed Services Committee, sent a letter to Secretary Hegseth and the acting Navy secretary urging a response regarding the living conditions on the USS Lincoln.
However, Secretary Hegseth refuted a series of reports that serious problems had occurred in the poor environment of the USS Lincoln or the mental health of the crew as a "complete distortion of the facts," Reuters reported.
Answering reporters' questions during a visit to Panama, Secretary Hegseth said, "We ensure that every ship, every crew, and every captain has everything we can possibly provide at every moment."
(Photo: AP, Yonhap News)
※ Please note: This article was translated by AI and may contain errors.
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