USS George Washington To Replace USS Abraham Lincoln As Concerns Grow About Mental Health Of Crew

The aircraft carrier USS George Washington has begun heading toward the Middle East to replace the USS Abraham Lincoln, as reports have circulated of mental health concerns aboard Lincoln.

The carrier switch, according to a report published Thursday by The Wall Street Journal, is part of a scheduled rotation to relieve the USS Abraham Lincoln after more than eight months at sea with limited port calls. The extended deployment — since November 21, 2025 — has reportedly resulted in several sailors aboard Lincoln attempting to jump overboard.

The Navy Times reported on Tuesday that at least two sailors had made such attempts. Annabelle Loma told the outlet that her husband was one of them, and that he was on medical hold.

“He’s scared. He thinks he’ll get a dishonorable discharge, and just because he was burnt out, his 13-year career is ruined, just like that. That’s not fair, that’s not right. That’s not what he should be worrying about right now,” she said.

Maria Rodriguez told The Navy Times that her husband had been on watch when another attempt was made, and that he’d been able to stop the sailor from going overboard.

“He said he hadn’t felt adrenaline like that in his life, and he was just so thankful he was able to get to [the sailor] in time, to stop them from going overboard,” she explained.

The Navy has disputed the accounts, telling USNI News on Wednesday that it has “not identified an increase” in reported suicidal ideation or suicide attempts aboard Lincoln.

Other reports have mentioned a number of issues, such as broken toilets, moldy showers, and water contamination — in addition to alleged food shortages and complications with the mail service that kept some care packages from reaching their destinations.

Democrats in Congress quickly blamed President Donald Trump’s administration for creating the situation.

Sen. Richard Blumenthal (D-CT) fired off a letter to War Secretary Pete Hegseth and acting Secretary of the Navy Hung Cao, demanding answers to several questions about conditions aboard the Lincoln and expressing concerns about Iran, claiming that the objectives had never been clear.

Sen. Mark Kelly (D-AZ) posted a link to mental health resources for military service members, but jabbed vaguely at the administration as well: “The reports from the USS Abraham Lincoln about multiple sailors attempting to jump into the sea are disturbing. Long deployments are hard. They are a lot harder when the mission isn’t well defined and there is no end in sight.”

Over the last week, both Cao and Vice Adm. Joseph Cahill (commander of Naval Surface Forces) met with families either in person or virtually to address their concerns. Cao had said that the USS Theodore Roosevelt Strike Group would be deployed to replace Lincoln — but later reports suggest that it will be Washington instead.

“We hear you loud and clear [regarding] the impact this has on families, on service members and the long-term ability of us to stand, sustain our forces’ health,” Cahill said.

Lincoln has been at sea for 241 consecutive days — more than a month longer than the previous record of 206 days, set by the USS Dwight D. Eisenhower during the COVID-19 pandemic. The last port call was December 11, 2025, in Guam. The deployment was supposed to end in May, but has been extended due to the ongoing war with Iran.

Secretary Hegseth said on Thursday that some of the reporting concerning the conditions on Lincoln had been “completely misrepresented.”

“Americans don’t understand what it’s like to do that,” he said. “As someone who’s — not been on a ship like that — but been on long deployments, I feel it. I want them home as soon as everybody else. I want folks rotated as quickly as possible … to that crew and to all those crews, we’re going to do everything we can for you and we are so grateful for their dedication.”