The USS Abraham Lincoln is not the only aircraft carrier suffering from dismal morale and a severe supply shortage, a new report alleges.
Loved ones of sailors on the USS George H.W. Bush are sounding the alarm that it has “virtually no food, water, or soap” after four and a half months at sea, the independent journalist Aaron Parnas reports.
“They’ve been out at sea for 146 days with no end in sight,” a loved one of two U.S. sailors texted Parnas. “Morale is low, and everyone is miserable. It’s heartbreaking.”
The concerned family member said she learned of the on-board conditions because her sister-in-law returned stateside for a family emergency and shared how dire the situation is. The USS Bush is in the Arabian Sea as part of a carrier strike group. It left Norfolk, Virginia, in March.
Reached for comment, the Pentagon deferred the Daily Beast to the U.S. Navy, which did not respond to an email.
Reports of low morale on the USS Bush came amid chilling reports from the USS Lincoln, which is also on patrol in the Middle East. It has been at sea for a record-breaking 266 days.
A pair of military outlets—the Stars and Stripes and the Navy Times—report that several sailors have attempted to go overboard or have gone overboard on the Lincoln. One sailor reportedly went overboard and was in the water for an hour before being rescued.
The Lincoln’s deployment was scheduled to end in May but was extended because of President Donald Trump’s prolonged war with Iran. MS NOW reports that the ship’s 5,000-plus crew has had only two days on land—in Guam in December and Oman in July.
Supplies on board are running short, and sailors are sharing shocking images of rations.
Loved ones shared texts with MeidasTouch claiming the ship can’t get any fresh food, like milk, and that even some once-frozen meat arrives rotten. A sailor’s family member told MS NOW that their loved one has been eating “half a cup of rice and two tortillas” a day.
In addition to low food supplies and moldy showers, family members have described out-of-service toilets and laundry rooms that have been inaccessible for weeks. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has brushed off the reports as “fake news,” but military officials tell CBS News that the Lincoln is now being relieved of duty by the carrier USS George Washington.
