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Navy dispatches aircraft carrier to Middle East to relieve USS Abraham Lincoln

Washington Examiner · back to the audit

By Claire Carter. Published 2026-08-14T13:57:53Z.

The Navy is moving another aircraft carrier toward the Middle East to relieve the USS Abraham Lincoln after its deployment stretched beyond eight months and reports of dire conditions aboard the vessel emerged.

The USS George Washington, the Navy's only forward-deployed aircraft carrier, was traveling west from the Pacific and was spotted moving through the Strait of Malacca, according to ship tracking data posted to social media and multiple reports. The route puts the carrier on a path toward the Indian Ocean and eventually the Middle East.

The George Washington left Da Nang, Vietnam, last week following a port visit. The carrier is based in Yokosuka, Japan, and typically operates in the western Pacific.

Tags: Department of Defense (Department of War), Iran, Middle East, Military, Navy, Pete Hegseth, Strait of Hormuz, Trump Administration, Washington DC.