US Navy's USS Abraham Lincoln aircraft carrier is heading back to the Pacific.

The USS Abraham Lincoln departed San Diego on November 24 for a Pacific deployment, according to information provided to USNI News, and sailed with Carrier Strike Group 3, Carrier Air Wing 9, and USS Frank E. Petersen Jr.

On November 24, 2025, USNI News learned that the USS Abraham Lincoln (CVN-72) discreetly departed the San Diego Naval Station for a Pacific deployment with Carrier Strike Group 3, Carrier Air Wing 9, and USS Frank E. Petersen Jr., beginning a new operational cycle less than one year after its previous cruise. This movement follows a sustained period of activity in 2024 and 2025 that included a 162-day deployment and multiple exercises such as Northern Edge in September. The departure also represents a deviation from the 36-month Optimized Fleet Response Plan that normally structures maintenance, training, surge posture, and deployment.
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The decision to send the USS Abraham Lincoln back to sea so quickly represents a clear departure from the Optimized Fleet Response Plan, which is designed around a 36-month cycle of maintenance, training, and deployment before its next deployment. (Picture source: US Navy)

No further official information was released about the strike group composition beyond the air defense role of USS Frank E. Petersen Jr. The redeployment of the USS Abraham Lincoln follows extensive activity during its previous 2024 deployment, which included missions across both the Indo-Pacific and Middle East regions, as well as combat actions carried out by its air wing before returning on December 20, 2024. In 2025, the carrier completed sustainment workups and took part in Northern Edge off Alaska in September, and will now return to sea outside the planned intervals established by the Optimized Fleet Response Plan, which structures carriers on a predictable long-term cycle. This decision shows that demand for carrier operations has increased across multiple regions, especially near China and Venezuela, requiring early redeployments. The strike group retains Carrier Air Wing 9, and the designated air defense destroyer, but no additional escort details have been specified, maintaining the USS Abraham Lincoln as a central platform for the activities of the U.S. Navy across the Pacific region.

Other carriers have demonstrated similar shifts from the intended cycle, including the USS Carl Vinson, which completed an almost four-and-a-half-month deployment in early 2024 before rejoining sustainment activities and Rim of the Pacific 2024. The Carl Vinson then sailed again on November 18, 2024, for an almost nine-month deployment, ultimately returning in August after continuous operations. Its last comprehensive maintenance occurred in 2022, showing that its schedule compressed multiple operational periods without a full availability. For its part, the USS Nimitz is completing its final deployment after more than eight months at sea and will be decommissioned and dismantled on the East Coast. These developments show the fleet adjustments occurring as older carriers near retirement and others absorb additional workload, while the future USS John F. Kennedy (CVN-79) continues its sea trials. The deployment cycle now seems to reflect operational priorities rather than the original schedule.

In recent years, the USS Abraham Lincoln’s operational activity has included combat, deterrence, and humanitarian missions, as well as participation in exercises linked to both the Indo-Pacific and the Middle East. During 2024, the carrier participated in a deployment that included strike operations against Houthi targets using F-35C fighter jets on November 9 and 10, marking the first combat use of this variant of the F-35 by the Carrier Air Wing 9’s Marine squadron VMFA 314. The 2024 deployment also included activities with the Italian Navy during dual carrier operations and resulted in a December return to San Diego. Prior milestones include Operation Fiery Vigil in 1991, which involved evacuation operations after the eruption of Mount Pinatubo, and operations in the Persian Gulf and Somalia in the early 1990s. This aircraft carrier also took part in Operation Enduring Freedom and Operation Iraqi Freedom, including sorties during the opening phase of the 2003 Iraq conflict and the associated presidential speech on May 1, 2003. The carrier also supported tsunami relief during Operation Unified Assistance in 2004 and 2005. In 2012, it transited the Strait of Hormuz during elevated regional tension, as part of its longstanding operational history.

The USS Abraham Lincoln also underwent a Refueling and Complex Overhaul from 2013 to 2017, which refueled its reactors and modernized its internal systems, enabling continued operations. Following this period, the ship shifted its homeport and was later deployed in 2019 on a 295-day around-the-world mission that included operations in the Mediterranean, the Middle East, the Indian Ocean, and the South China Sea before reaching San Diego. Additional milestones include service as a symbol for early integration of female aviators, the command tenure of Captain Amy Bauernschmidt beginning in 2021, who led a seven-month Pacific deployment, and the ship’s role as flagship in RIMPAC 2022 before being relieved in May 2023. The carrier also completed a December 2024 return after a deployment involving multiple fleets and training with partners. Its 2025 activities included participation in Northern Edge in August off Alaska after an accelerated fuel onload of 1.7 million gallons of JP-5 in July. During Northern Edge 2025, the ship operated in the Gulf of Alaska with U.S. and Canadian forces.

This Nimitz-class aircraft carrier displaces 100,000 to 104,000 tons, measures 333 meters in length with a 76.8-meter flight deck beam, and operates with a draft of approximately 11.3 meters. It is powered by two A4W reactors driving four steam turbines and four shafts that produce around 260,000 shaft horsepower, for speeds exceeding 30 knots between refueling cycles. The ship’s flight deck spans 4.5 acres and supports four steam catapults and four arresting wires capable of launching and recovering the embarked air wing, which typically includes 60 to 70 aircraft and can reach up to 90, such as F/A-18E-F Super Hornets, F-35C fighters, EA-18G Growlers, E-2D Hawkeyes, CMV-22B or C-2A aircraft, and MH-60 helicopters. The carrier’s defensive systems consist of Sea Sparrow ESSM launchers, Rolling Airframe Missile launchers, and Phalanx CIWS mounts supported by electronic warfare systems such as AN/SLQ-32, decoy launchers, and the Nixie towed system. Sensors include AN/SPS-48E, AN/SPS-49, AN/SPQ-9B, and specialized landing radars. Updated combat direction systems and digital communications further ensure the integration with escorts and joint elements.

Within Carrier Strike Group 3, the Abraham Lincoln functions as the flagship and hosts the command staff that coordinates surface, air, and joint assets across assigned areas of operation. During Northern Edge 2025, it operated with USS O'Kane, USS Michael Murphy, USS Frank E. Petersen Jr., HMCS Regina, and a CC-150 Polaris tanker as part of a force involving more than 6,400 personnel, around 100 aircraft, and seven naval vessels. The exercise focused on multi-domain integration across maritime, air, cyber, and ground environments in cooperation with U.S. Northern Command and Indo-Pacific Command. The carrier launched aircraft equipped with the AIM-174B, a long-range air-launched system derived from the SM-6, during the exercise to support extended air defense roles. The ship’s activities contribute to both regional deterrence and testing of emerging capabilities, retaining its role as a primary U.S. Navy asset until the late 2030s.

Written by Jérôme Brahy

Jérôme Brahy is a defense analyst and documentalist at Army Recognition. He specializes in naval modernization, aviation, drones, armored vehicles, and artillery, with a focus on strategic developments in the United States, China, Ukraine, Russia, Türkiye, and Belgium. His analyses go beyond the facts, providing context, identifying key actors, and explaining why defense news matters on a global scale.