Families of sailors and Marines aboard the USS Abraham Lincoln are raising urgent concerns about deteriorating conditions on the aircraft carrier, which has now spent nine months at sea and five consecutive months in combat operations.
The crew of more than 5,000 personnel is facing moldy showers, food shortages and a severe lack of basic supplies such as toothpaste, soap and deodorant, reported MS NOW.
Most troubling to family members is the exhaustion plaguing the crew, who are working excruciatingly long shifts with minimal days off — a situation that military experts warn could lead to deadly mistakes on one of the world’s most dangerous workplaces.
“The morale is not good,” said Bonnie York, whose stepson is on the Lincoln. “Apparently, the ship’s doctor or therapist said they need to hit port soon or people are going to start, you know, losing their minds.”
Since leaving its home port in San Diego in November, the Lincoln has had only two days off the carrier. After a brief port call in Guam in December, the ship did not stop again until July 7, when it pulled into Oman after 208 consecutive days at sea — a modern-day record for a Navy aircraft carrier.
The extended deployment has created hazardous conditions on the flight deck, where sailors operate high-speed aircraft, manage spinning propellers and load bombs and missiles.
One Navy veteran whose son serves on the Lincoln described seeing holes worn through the flight deck itself. The Navy’s 5th Fleet spokesperson denied this account, stating the deck has been properly maintained, though he acknowledged more than 10,000 aircraft sorties have occurred over eight months.
Family members describe their loved ones reporting non-operational toilets, laundry facilities broken for weeks, and extended periods without hot water. In April, photos shared by sailors’ families showed extremely small food portions described as inedible. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth dismissed these reports as “fake news,” but families insist the concerns are legitimate and ongoing.
Nicole Conrad, whose son is serving on the Lincoln, said he has described days when showers were locked and described a meal consisting of only half a cup of rice and two tortillas.
“Go visit. If you want to sit here and you want to say that Trump is taking care of the soldiers, go yourself,” Conrad told reporters, adding that she voted for President Donald Trump but is frustrated by his decision to enter the Iran war.
“He put our nose in a war that we shouldn’t be in,” she said.
Brett Snow, a Navy veteran whose son serves on the Lincoln, warned that the relentless pace with few breaks creates an environment “ripe for accidents.”
The carrier strike group has been central to Trump’s military campaign against Iran, enforcing naval blockades, intercepting vessels, and supporting airstrikes on strategic Iranian targets. The deployment has stretched far beyond the routine seven-month timeline, with indications it has been extended for a second time.
Family members and military experts worry that continued exhaustion and deteriorating conditions could compromise operational safety and retention. Navy veteran Snow noted that if carrier deployments continue to lengthen at this pace, it will become increasingly difficult for the Navy to retain sailors when their tours conclude.
Snow said he voted for the president because he campaigned on keeping the U.S. out of foreign wars, and he strongly agreed that Iran should not have nuclear weapons, but he doubts the current strategy is working.
“I don’t know if we’re ever going to be able to achieve any kind of reasonable — anything that even comes close to what Americans might consider a victory,” Snow said.
York agreed, saying military families were “sacrificing for something that none of us want to be a part of, essentially.”
“I don’t think we’re safer,” York said. “I think we’ve depleted a lot of things. I think we’ve pushed our military to the edge.”
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