Concerns over the mental and physical well-being of sailors aboard the USS Abraham Lincoln have increased significantly after multiple reports of firsthand accounts from active military personnel describe attempted overboard incidents and grueling living conditions.
“This deployment is the worst one, and I pray no other boat goes through the same,” one sailor wrote to a family member, adding that even veteran crew members who have been deployed hundreds of times have coined the current deployment as the worst as well.
“I was talking to some random dude… and he was saying it’s an experiment the government is doing to see how far they can push sailors’ limits of being out to sea with the worst experience,” the sailor added, arguing that the U.S. Navy doesn’t care about the circumstances because “the missions will always come first.”
Other accounts describe incidents in which shipmates attempt to go overboard, and crew members save sailors from doing so.
USS Lincoln's Overextended Deployment
The USS Lincoln has been out at sea for more than eight months. The aircraft carrier departed from San Diego, California, in November 2025 and was headed toward the Pacific.
Plans changed, however, after the surprise launch of “Operation Epic Fury,” leading the aircraft carrier to redirect to the Middle East.
The ship has only stopped twice since then, once in Guam a month after deployment and then on July 7, 2026, when it briefly entered Oman.
In that time, sailors faced food and supply shortages and weeks without laundry or hot water.
Navy's Plans To Relieve USS Lincoln
On Aug. 6, 2026, the Navy held an in-person town hall in which about 200 family members demanded answers from acting Secretary of the Navy Hung Cao.
Cao reportedly informed attendees that the maritime service branch is preparing the USS Theodore Roosevelt to sail into the Middle East to relieve the Lincoln and its personnel.
Cao, however, did not disclose when the relief would arrive due to operational security.
