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The USS Lincoln Is Part of a Long History of Naval Mistreatment

The USS “Lincoln” Is Part of a Long History of Naval Mistreatment

The ship has been out to sea for the longest stretch of time without a port call in modern history. Effects on physical and mental health are dire.

The USS Abraham Lincoln (CVN 72) conducts US blockade operations related to the Strait of Hormuz on April 16, 2026, in the Arabian Sea.

The USS Abraham Lincoln was designed to sail forever. The 100,000-ton vessel can transport 5,400 sailors and 90 jets for 25 years without refueling, thanks to the atomic fission of two Westinghouse nuclear reactors stored in the hull. The ship’s infinite power source offers an incredible military edge, one tempered by inevitable rust and oxidation from sea water, plus the basic human needs of the sailors aboard, among them clean water, food, soap, and the ability to engage, at least intermittently, with civilization.

Last November, for the ninth or 10th time, the Lincoln departed from the port of San Diego for the Middle East. The ship was worn down, and the crew was burnt out, thoroughly frazzled by what military leaders described as a quickening “operational tempo” that was soon to hit hyper speed—conditions that only nuclear reactors could endure.

For nearly half of 2024, the Lincoln had been deployed in the Eastern Mediterranean to deter Iran, the Houthis, and other proxy forces targeting Israel as the country unleashed a genocide in Gaza. In 2025, the crew of the Lincoln underwent a series of intense sustainment exercises across hundreds of nautical miles in Alaska and other locales.

The November deployment was slated to end in May, but three months in, President Trump launched the War in Iran, forcing the Lincoln to ramp up operations and remain on the water. As of this writing, the carrier has been out to sea for a whopping eight months—the longest stretch of time without a port call in modern history. Thousands of sailors worked hundreds of days without a single one off.

Military brass today express a posture of constant vigilance while also proclaiming that the Pentagon is “a people business.” Acting Navy Secretary Hung Cao has equated “troop welfare” with tactical success, as have countless leaders before him. The truth, however, is that war is a body business, its planners calculating the most brutally efficient ways to maintain morale and manpower. Military food, for instance, is designed within an inch of its life, made to fit specific caloric and dietary standards while also being lightweight and nonperishable. The rare perk of a “surf and turf” meal is seen by........

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