Illustrative image. (U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 3rd Class Maxwell Orlosky)
The United States’ largest aircraft carrier, the USS Gerald R. Ford, has again entered the waters of the Middle East, two defense officials told the Associated Press on April 18.
The Ford, which until recently was operating in the Eastern Mediterranean, transited the Suez Canal, along with a pair of guided-missile destroyers, the USS Mahan and the USS Winston S. Churchill, and is now operating in the Red Sea, one official said.
The deployment came after more than a month in the Mediterranean following a major fire in a laundry space that forced the ship back to port for repairs. The carrier also broke the record for the longest aircraft carrier deployment since the Vietnam war this week.
Embarked aboard the Ford is the Carrier Air Wing Eight with more than 70 warplanes, including F/A-18E/F Super Hornet fighter jets, and EA-18G Growler electronic attack jets, in addition to a number of E-2D Hawkeye tactical airborne early warning aircraft.
The Ford’s arrival makes it the second aircraft carrier in the region in addition to the USS Abraham Lincoln, currently operating in the Arabian Sea.
The USS George H. W. Bush is also heading toward the region and is currently off the coast of South Africa. It will likely join the Lincoln in the Arabian Sea within a few days.
Alongside the Lincoln in the Arabian Sea is the 31st Marine Expeditionary Unit (MEU), with the aircraft-carrying USS Tripoli and two other amphibious assault ships. The 11th MEU is also making its way to the region, aboard three more amphibious assault ships, including the aircraft-carrying USS Boxer.
This naval buildup by the U.S. comes as the two-week ceasefire with Iran nears its end. Diplomatic efforts do not appear to be moving forward fast enough, and it is still unclear if the ceasefire will be extended.
The Lincoln and the Bush could end up supporting amphibious operations on the Iranian coast by the 31st and 11th MEUs to reopen the Strait of Hormuz. Meanwhile, the Ford will likely remain in the Red Sea to deter the Houthis in Yemen, who could attempt to block the Bab-el-Mandeb Strait — a checkpoint that connects Red Sea to the Gulf of Aden and by extension the Indian Ocean — if Iran is invaded.
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i hope ansar allah puts some holes in some american ships.
it’s means the toilets are unclogged ?
bastard amerikkkans!
walking in the death trap . it clearly shows that us defence is useless
my beloved transgender americunt navy desperate to lick arab peniz
let’s hope it gets wrecked this time!
i wonder when another flying washing machine is incoming?
to serve houthis for target practice if anything. previous similar attempts at “deterring houthis” have all failed miserably.
i guess we’ll see more “laundry fires”, right?
10 000 parkis are ready to invade yemen
toilets are fixed now we can go to war
can’t flush tampons no more put in waste basket please
and only tomato soup ’till they get home.
that’s what a douch bag is for.
the red sea is back in the picture. the houthi have taken many beatings by not submitting to global war lords. they have beaten the us navy by running it off. is appears the suez and hormuz shipping lanes are board walk and park place in the current energy monopoly mafia game. do not forget the panama canal.
the order is that, china and all nations shall comply to petrol dollar currency masters. this pirate mafia regime is not capable of leadership. but thinks it is. all leaders in this believe they are better than and above all populations by position
time to take down some more sand-apes!!!
heheheh
i guess the is hoping for third time lucky. hehehehehhehe
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i tried to send product to muripigs, no pay in shekels…..
the strategic mutual defence agreement (smda) is a security and defence pact between the countries of pakistan and saudi arabia. under this agreement, both countries have committed to treating any act of aggression against one as an act against both (known as collective security).
a big fat target for the houthi’s.
diplomatic efforts…hahahahaha. so now trumpco thinks to have 3 carrier groups there to do what they couldn’t before. somethings up and it ain’t just another attack. this looks to be for all the marbles. it will have to be, there’s nothing much left of u.s. power. it looks like time for a ff somewhere. something that might require a nuke. it’s about all the u.s. has left.
oh, please sink that carrier!
they say that rusty tub gerry ford can’t move and chew gum at the same time. meanwhile get ready for more shitty underwear explosions as slumvillains get whacked.
perhaps it’ll stumble down a few stairs again & need more repair?
‘deter’ probably isn’t the right word when describing the houthi’s. target practice is more like it. the longer the uss sitting duck paddles around the red sea, the more time the houthi’s have at perfecting their targeting and causing another laundry fire.
me vanya in americunt gay bar had our anuz torn by hillbillies and 2 mulattos–now we both experts on lgbt hillbilly military jizz