United States (U.S.) Central Command Chief Admiral Brad Cooper visited the aircraft carrier USS Abraham Lincoln after reports surfaced regarding the alleged mental health concerns among some sailors.
According to The Independent, CENTCOM chief visited the carrier, which has been deployed in the Middle East for more than 240 days, this week and praised the “resilience” of the crew aboard.
In a statement on Sunday, the military commander described the prolonged deployment of the warship as historic.
He said: “History will record this deployment as one of the most operationally intense and consequential of the modern era.” The 59-year-old praised the carrier’s leadership for prioritising crew’s mental health and resilience.
Admiral Cooper revealed that Lincoln strike group had the lowest number of mental health cases on the U.S. Navy’s 11 active aircraft carriers.
This comes after Navy Times reported that two sailors tried to jump overboard due to concerning conditions on the vessel. Families of the roughly 5,000 sailors and Marines have also expressed concerns over prolonged deployment.
According to Democratic Party’s California Representative Mike Levin, the ship is out of soap, deodorant, toothpaste. It has broken toilets, moldy showers and no hot water for weeks.
Secretary of War Pete Hegseth has brushed off the concerns stating the media reports were misrepresenting.
