EIGHT USS LINCOLN CREW MEMBERS ATTEMPT SUICIDE DURING DEPLOYMENT

Eight sailors assigned to the USS Abraham Lincoln carrier strike group have attempted suicide since the start of the ship's deployment, according to Hung Cao, the acting US navy secretary, in a letter to Senator Kirsten Gillibrand. Cao said the figure covers the Lincoln's crew alongside sailors from the carrier airwing, strike group and destroyer squadron staff, escorting destroyers and embarked aviation squadrons. He wrote the letter on behalf of Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth in response to Gillibrand's questions about living conditions aboard the fleet. The Lincoln's deployment, undertaken as part of the US military campaign against Iran, kept the ship at sea for 286 days before the crew disembarked on 1 September in a Thai resort city. The deployment had originally been due to finish in May but was extended amid the unresolved conflict.

According to Cao, one sailor's attempt to go overboard in March was stopped by fellow crew members, while in August another sailor did go overboard, was rescued and received medical treatment before being transferred off the ship for further care. Two military newspapers reported in August on deteriorating mental health among the crew, including multiple attempts to jump overboard, prompting Democratic senators to call for an investigation. Separate reporting alleged mould in the ship's showers and dwindling supplies of food and soap.

Cao acknowledged in his letter that the number of entrée options had been temporarily cut from two to one, a measure he said was intended "to optimise endurance and ensure sustained time on station", while maintaining that four nutritionally balanced meals were still served daily. He also acknowledged delays in replenishing crew supplies. Hegseth has said media coverage of conditions aboard the Lincoln "completely misrepresented" the situation. Gillibrand's inquiry and Cao's written response mark the latest exchange over welfare conditions during the extended deployment.