How U.S. Navy Nimitz-Class Carrier USS Abraham Lincoln Is Armed to Counter Drones and Swarm Boats.

The U.S. Navy aircraft carrier USS Abraham Lincoln CVN 72 conducted a live fire Close In Weapon System exercise on 8 January 2026, according to information published by the U.S. Department of War. The drill confirmed the carrier’s ability to defeat close-range aerial and surface threats while operating in a strategically sensitive region.

The U.S. Navy Nimitz-class aircraft carrier USS Abraham Lincoln (CVN-72) carried out a live fire exercise with its Close-In Weapon System on the flight deck on 8 January 2026, validating the ship’s ability to respond to immediate threats under real-world operating conditions. The event, disclosed by the U.S. Department of War, came while the carrier was deployed in the South China Sea, where USNI News reported on 5 January 2026 that the strike group was conducting routine operations amid heightened regional military activity.
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A Phalanx CIWS fires aboard USS Abraham Lincoln during a live-fire exercise, demonstrating the carrier’s layered defense against aerial and surface threats. (Picture source: U.S. Department of War)

The live-fire event focused on the Phalanx Close-In Weapon System, a core element of the Nimitz-class carrier’s self-defense architecture. U.S. Navy aircraft carriers are high-value strategic assets whose protection depends on a layered defensive approach designed to counter a wide spectrum of threats, ranging from anti-ship missiles to unmanned aerial systems and explosive-laden fast attack craft.

CIWS: Final Shield Against Aerial and Surface Threats

A Nimitz-class aircraft carrier is typically equipped with four Phalanx CIWS mounts, installed on elevated sponsons around the hull and near the island superstructure. These positions provide overlapping 360° coverage, protecting the flight deck, command spaces, and critical systems from threats approaching at very short range.

Each CIWS integrates search radar, tracking radar, electro-optical sensors, and a six-barrel 20 mm M61A1 Gatling gun capable of firing more than 4,500 rpm. With an effective engagement range of approximately 1.5–2 km, the system is designed to defeat very low-altitude and high-speed threats in the final seconds before impact.

Against aerial threats, CIWS functions as a last-ditch anti-aircraft and anti-missile system. It is optimized to destroy sea-skimming anti-ship missiles flying only a few meters above sea level, as well as low-flying aircraft and small UAVs that evade longer-range defenses. Its autonomous operation allows rapid engagement without reliance on external fire-control data.

Against kamikaze boats and unmanned surface vessels (USVs), CIWS remains one of the most effective defensive tools available. Fast, low-profile explosive boats can approach at high speed with minimal warning, particularly in congested littoral waters. CIWS can disable propulsion systems or detonate explosive payloads before impact, providing a decisive close-range counter.

Sea Sparrow: Short-Range Air and Missile Defense Layer

Beyond gun-based defense, USS Abraham Lincoln is equipped with two Mk 57 Mod 3 NATO Sea Sparrow launchers mounted amidships on port and starboard sponsons. These launchers fire the RIM-7 Sea Sparrow missile, a radar-guided interceptor with an effective engagement range of approximately 15–20 km.

Sea Sparrow serves as the carrier’s primary short-range anti-aircraft and anti-missile defense system, designed to intercept hostile aircraft, helicopters, and incoming anti-ship missiles at low to medium altitudes. By engaging threats well before they reach CIWS range, Sea Sparrow increases reaction time and reduces the risk of saturation attacks.

Against aerial drones, Sea Sparrow is effective against larger UAVs, armed reconnaissance platforms, and loitering munitions with sufficient radar cross-section. While it is not optimized for very small drones, it provides a critical defensive layer against more capable unmanned aerial threats.

Sea Sparrow retains a limited surface engagement capability against large, radar-visible surface targets, but it is not intended as a primary anti-boat weapon and remains focused on air and missile defense missions.

Rolling Airframe Missile: High-Agility Counter to Modern Threats

Complementing Sea Sparrow is the RIM-116 Rolling Airframe Missile (RAM) system, which typically has two launchers installed on Nimitz-class aircraft carriers. These launchers are positioned near the island superstructure and aft sections of the ship to protect key approach sectors and flight operations areas.

RAM has an engagement range of approximately 9–10 km and employs a dual-mode passive RF/IR guidance system. This allows the missile to home in on radar emissions or thermal signatures without emitting radar energy, improving survivability in electronically contested environments.

RAM is specifically designed to defeat highly maneuverable aerial threats, including modern anti-ship missiles and low-altitude UAVs. Its fire-and-forget capability enables rapid sequential engagements, making it particularly effective against multi-axis or swarm-style attacks.

Against USVs and kamikaze boats, RAM provides an emerging capability. Larger unmanned boats equipped with engines, sensors, or data links generate IR and RF signatures that RAM can exploit, allowing engagement before the threat enters CIWS range.

Layered Defense Against New Maritime Warfare Threats

Together, the carrier’s four CIWS mounts, two Sea Sparrow launchers, and two RAM launchers form a layered inner-defense architecture capable of countering aircraft, UAVs, anti-ship missiles, and fast attack craft. Threats are engaged progressively, from missile range to last-ditch gun defense, ensuring redundancy and resilience against saturation attacks.

These onboard systems operate in coordination with the carrier strike group. Aegis-equipped cruisers and destroyers provide long-range air and missile defense extending hundreds of km from the carrier, while carrier-based aircraft and helicopters contribute to early detection and surface threat interdiction. The carrier’s organic weapons ensure survivability if outer defensive layers are penetrated.

Live-fire exercises such as the one conducted aboard USS Abraham Lincoln are essential to maintaining combat readiness. They validate weapon performance, sensor fusion, and crew proficiency under realistic operational conditions in which reaction time is limited and flight operations must continue.

Strategic Significance

The exercise reflects a broader shift in maritime warfare. The proliferation of low-cost UAVs, loitering munitions, and explosive USVs has increased the importance of automated, layered close-in defenses alongside traditional missile defense systems.

As USS Abraham Lincoln continues operations in the South China Sea and across the Indo-Pacific, its demonstrated defensive capabilities reinforce U.S. deterrence, freedom of navigation, and the protection of allied interests. The survivability of U.S. aircraft carriers increasingly depends on their ability to counter unmanned and asymmetric threats in addition to conventional ones.

The continued modernization, correct positioning, and intensive training associated with Nimitz-class defensive armament ensure that U.S. aircraft carriers remain credible, protected, and operational in an evolving maritime threat environment.

Written by Alain Servaes – Chief Editor, Army Recognition Group
Alain Servaes is a former infantry non-commissioned officer and the founder of Army Recognition. With over 20 years in defense journalism, he provides expert analysis on military equipment, NATO operations, and the global defense industry.