CENTCOM commander seeks to steady nerves aboard USS Abraham Lincoln as deployment drags on
As scrutiny mounts over conditions aboard the USS Abraham Lincoln, the head of U.S. Central Command traveled to the aircraft carrier over the weekend and tried to reassure the crew and their families that their concerns are being heard.
Adm. Brad Cooper, who leads CENTCOM, said the months at sea have been hard on everyone. “Deployment at sea is uniquely challenging and tough, and every single one of us, including me, reacts to stressors in different ways,” he wrote on X. “I’ve long believed that mental health is another aspect of individual health and requires our attention just like physical health and spiritual health.”
He did not confirm or deny specific reports of suicide attempts, declining morale, or shortages of food and supplies, but his remarks were a clear acknowledgment of the toll an unusually long deployment has taken.
The Abraham Lincoln has now been operating for more than nine months, well beyond the Navy’s typical six-month deployment cycle, while the U.S. continues to conduct operations tied to the conflict with Iran. The Military Times and Stars and Stripes have reported suicide attempts and a sharp drop in morale among the thousands of sailors and Marines on board.
Jefferson Kelley, whose son Jackson is assigned to the carrier, told CBS News that the crew has been asked to do too much. “They should not be deployed this long,” Kelley said. “These are old ships. It’s not like they’re even state-of-the-art. And they take a lot of maintenance, a lot of work. It’s around the clock.”
The Navy says it has not recorded an increase in reported suicidal ideation or suicide attempts, and an investigation is underway after a sailor went overboard on Aug. 3 and was recovered. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has dismissed the reporting on the ship’s conditions as “completely misrepresented,” and President Trump argued the deployment has been “not nearly long enough” when asked whether the carrier had exceeded its limits.
Those assurances have not satisfied lawmakers in either party. Rep. Don Bacon, a Nebraska Republican, called for Congress to hold oversight hearings and take testimony from top Navy officials. Sen. Richard Blumenthal, a Connecticut Democrat, sent a letter to Pentagon leadership demanding a plan to relieve the crew and expressing concern about “widespread reports of shortages of basic supplies, water contamination, plumbing issues, deteriorating mental health” and “deck safety concerns.”
A U.S. official has said the USS George Washington is expected to move into the Middle East to replace the Abraham Lincoln, though that handoff may take time. The episode underscores the rising political pressure on the Pentagon over extended deployments even as it tries to maintain military posture in a volatile region.