The U.S. Navy aircraft carrier USS Abraham Lincoln returned to its home port in San Diego after spending 322 days on a mission—one of the longest deployments of a U.S. aircraft carrier since the Vietnam War.
During that period, around 5,000 crew members endured months of combat operations, supply shortages, notices about food rationing and immense psychological strain.
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In the early hours of the morning, the sailors’ families and friends gathered at the port of San Diego to welcome their loved ones, waving American flags, banners and welcome messages. For many of them, the moment marked the end of months of anxiety and limited communication with relatives at sea.
According to The New York Times, some families had gone more than a week without hearing from the sailors. The mother of a 20-year-old service member said she tried to keep her son’s spirits up by sending him encouraging messages and passages from the Bible.
One of the most emotional moments was the reunion of fathers with their newborn babies. According to U.S. Navy tradition, among the first sailors to come ashore are those who became parents during the mission. Among them was 21-year-old Eduardo Morales, who saw his five-month-old son, Emmanuel, for the first time. His wife, Lenia Morales, explained that it had been especially difficult to cope alone with the birth and the baby’s first months of life.
USS Abraham Lincoln began its mission on November 21, 2025, before the outbreak of the war with Iran. The ship spent nearly a month at sea before making a brief stop at the naval base in Guam to refuel.
Supply difficulties worsened after Iran’s attack on the U.S. Navy’s main support center in Manama, Bahrain, immediately after the conflict in the Middle East began on February 28.
With Iranian ballistic missiles threatening ports in the region, U.S. warships faced difficulties securing food, fuel and other materials. As a result, the Navy was forced to move its main supply hub to Diego Garcia, a British territory in the Indian Ocean, approximately 2,200 miles away.
The first signs of the difficulties emerged through the sailors’ families, who brought journalists photographs of limited food rations. Some families tried to send packages containing food and other items, but many were either lost, destroyed or arrived months late.
Nevertheless, Captain Daniel J. Keller, the aircraft carrier’s commanding officer, said after the return that the ship had had enough food and supplies to continue operations.
“We did not miss a single mission. I did not miss a single meal. We served four meals a day, a total of 14,000 to 16,000 meals a day for the entire crew,” he said.
Beyond the supply problems, the mission was also accompanied by concerns about the personnel’s mental health.
Acting U.S. Navy Secretary Hung Kao acknowledged in response to questions from Democratic lawmakers that eight members of the Lincoln task force had attempted suicide. One sailor had jumped overboard, while another had tried to do the same but was stopped by his shipmates.
Some sailors who spoke after returning described these difficulties as part of the demands of a combat mission, while others acknowledged that they would need psychological support to cope with their experiences.
Family members also confirmed that there had been periods when food was rationed. Victoria Tozzi, the mother of one of the sailors, described the rations she saw in photographs sent by her son as unacceptable.
She also said she had been concerned after learning that Iran had launched missiles and drones toward the aircraft carrier, which, according to reports, were intercepted.
U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, who joined the ship on Wednesday for the final part of its journey, acknowledged the mission’s extraordinary duration but called reports of supply problems exaggerated. He presented the crew with the Presidential Unit Citation, one of the highest honors a U.S. military unit can receive for exceptional service.
USS Abraham Lincoln played a central role in the air campaign against Iran. According to a U.S. Navy official, by August its aircraft had conducted more than 10,000 sorties and dropped more than 1.5 million pounds of ordnance.
Its aircraft also took part in enforcing the blockade of Iranian ports.
In early May, an F/A-18 Super Hornet operating from Lincoln struck the rudder of the Iranian tanker M/T Hasna with its 20 mm cannon, disabling it as it attempted to cross the blockade line.
A month later, another Super Hornet released a guided munition into the engine room of the tanker M/T Marivex in the Gulf of Oman as the ship was heading toward Iran. All 24 members of the tanker’s crew were rescued by an Omani military helicopter.
The conflict with Iran has increased pressure on the U.S. fleet, which has 11 nuclear-powered aircraft carriers.
According to reports, John C. Stennis and Harry S. Truman are out of service because their nuclear reactors are being refueled, while five other aircraft carriers have already been involved in wartime operations.
Gerald R. Ford entered a shipyard in July for overdue maintenance, while the nearly 50-year-old Nimitz is expected to be dismantled next year.
Under these circumstances, Dwight D. Eisenhower, Carl Vinson and Ronald Reagan remain among the main aircraft carriers that could be deployed if the conflict, now in its eighth month, continues.
During the mission, the Lincoln’s crew spent around nine and a half months at sea without any significant break. The ship reached Pattaya, Thailand, on September 2, where the crew stayed for five days. On September 18, it returned to U.S. territory, with a brief stop in Guam, where sailors could go ashore but had to remain within the naval base.
Upon returning to San Diego, the crew is expected to have more time to recover and reunite with their families. Under standard practice, around half of the sailors receive two weeks of leave, while the rest continue working regular hours and return home each day. After two weeks, the groups switch.
For the family members waiting at the port, however, the most important thing was the end of a long and difficult mission. “I’m happy that he and the rest of the crew returned safely. It was a very difficult and very long mission. But now he is back,” said a veteran who waited for his son with deep emotion.
