USS Lincoln woes highlight US Navy limits in prolonged Iran war: Experts

Washington, DC – Poor planning or the harsh reality of war? Reported conditions on the USS Abraham Lincoln aircraft carrier during its record-breaking deployment have sparked the latest front of debate over how the administration of US President Donald Trump is handling the US-Israeli war with Iran.

The recent attention, experts told Al Jazeera, has underscored the limits of US naval might amid the conflict, which has entered a grinding stalemate and shown no signs of a more complete cessation after nearly six months.

The situation has highlighted issues of resupply in a region where US military sites have been bombarded throughout the war; provoked questions over the navy’s constraints in a prolonged asymmetrical conflict; and added to growing signs of military strain that experts warn could harm US deterrence in other arenas.

“The end state is that you will encounter readiness issues,” Bradley Martin, a retired US Navy captain and senior policy researcher at the RAND Corporation, told Al Jazeera.

“The navy exists to project power, and it exists to fill gaps, but you do have to deal with the fact that there are limits,” he said.

Unlike the reported shortages of both key offensive and defensive munitions stockpiles, the reported conditions on board the USS Lincoln have related to crew morale, shortages of basic supplies, and maintenance issues.

Several family members have recounted concerns over loved ones’ wellbeing to US media, including troubling instances of personnel attempting to jump overboard.

Democratic lawmakers have charged that this has been a “pattern” throughout the Trump administration’s leadership during the war, with similar conditions reported on the USS Gerald Ford, which was deployed for 326 days before its rotation in May, and the USS Lincoln, which has been deployed since November 2025, during which time it broke the naval record for the longest period without a port stop.