Washington: Eight US Navy personnel assigned to the USS Abraham Lincoln carrier strike group attempted suicide during a prolonged deployment that began in November 2025 and while it later supported American military operations against Iran, acting Navy Secretary Hung Cao disclosed in a letter sent this week to Democratic Senator Kirsten Gillibrand.
The figure covers the entire strike group rather than only the aircraft carrier. It includes personnel serving on the Lincoln, its aircraft units, accompanying destroyers and other command elements.
Cao said no suicide deaths occurred aboard the vessels during the deployment. A US defence official told CBS News that two of the attempts took place during active fighting with Iran.
Gillibrand had requested information about suicide attempts, mental health services and living conditions following reports from crew members and their families about exhaustion, supply difficulties and deteriorating morale.
The Nimitz class USS Abraham Lincoln left San Diego in November 2025 for what began as a routine deployment in the Pacific. The Pentagon redirected it to the Middle East in January 2026 as tensions with Iran intensified.
After the US and the illegal occupation force in Palestine began military operations against Iran at the end of February, the carrier group supported air operations and helped enforce the US naval blockade on Iranian ports. Navy officials said the Lincoln spent more than 200 days in a combat zone and conducted over 10,000 aircraft sorties.
Its approximately 5000 member crew remained at sea for more than nine months, including a record period exceeding 250 consecutive days without a port visit.
Apart from one brief stop early in the deployment, most personnel had no opportunity to go ashore until the carrier reached Thailand in early September.
Reports during the deployment described shortages of some food and hygiene items, plumbing failures, interrupted mail deliveries and limited opportunities for maintenance and rest.
Cao acknowledged that combat operations restricted resupply and temporarily reduced the number of main meal options. However, he said the ship continued serving four nutritionally balanced meals each day, maintained sufficient supplies and tested its drinking water daily.
The acting Navy Secretary said personnel had access to a psychologist, a clinical social worker, behavioural health technicians, a prevention counsellor, chaplains and a trained support dog.
Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth previously said reports about conditions aboard the Lincoln had been misrepresented. Gillibrand responded that Cao’s letter confirmed serious concerns about the welfare of personnel and called for greater accountability.
The USS George Washington replaced the Lincoln in the Middle East in August. The Lincoln later stopped in Thailand and Guam and is now travelling towards its home port in San Diego, although the Navy says its precise return schedule remains classified.
