Nimitz-class aircraft carrier USS Abraham Lincoln (CVN 72) transits the South China Sea on Jan. 10, 2026.
U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 2nd Class Christian Kibler
The United States Navy’s Abraham Lincoln Carrier Strike Group arrived in the United States Central Command area of responsibility on Monday, after being redirected from operations in the Indo-Pacific. The flagship of Carrier Strike Group 3, the Nimitz-class nuclear-powered aircraft carrier USS Abraham Lincoln (CVN-72) transited the Strait of Malacca on January 19, and has been escorted by the Arleigh Burke-class destroyers USS Frank E. Petersen, Jr. (DDG-121), USS Spruance (DDG-111) and USS Michael Murphy (DDG-112).
CSG-3 was ordered to the Middle East in response to ongoing tensions with Iran.
CENTCOM, which confirmed the arrival of the carrier strike group, said in a post on X that the deployment was “to promote regional security and stability.”
USS Abraham Lincoln departed from San Diego in late November 2025 and operated in the Philippine Sea before making a port call to the U.S. territory of Guam on December 11. Just two weeks ago, CVN-72 was conducting flight operations and live-fire drills in the South China Sea when the decision was made to dispatch the carrier to the Middle East.
This is now the third time CSG-3 has been deployed to the Indo-Pacific only to be redirected to the Middle East due to regional instability. USS Abraham Lincoln will also be the first U.S. Navy carrier to operate in the region since USS Nimitz (CVN-68) departed from the waters in September.
An EA-18G Growler, attached to Electronic Attack Squadron (VAQ) 133, prepares to make an arrested landing on the flight deck of Nimitz-class aircraft carrier USS Abraham Lincoln (CVN 72) on Jan. 23, 2026.
U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist Seaman Daniel Kimmelman
Houthis Rattling Sabers
Even as the deployment of CSG-3 was meant to promote stability, the arrival of the carrier and escorts could result in just the opposite. Yemen’s Iranian-backed Houthi rebels threatened to resume attacks on commercial ships in the Red Sea in response to the U.S. military build-up.
Washington concluded a ceasefire with the group in May 2025, in which the Houthis pledged to stop targeting American ships. The Omen-brokered agreement ended a two-month, intense bombing campaign conducted by the U.S. Navy as part of its Operation Rough Rider.
The group, which continues to control swaths of Yemen, warned they could resume their missile and drone attacks if needed.
President Donald Trump had announced last week that the U.S. Navy was sending a “massive fleet’ towards Iran, “just in case” action was needed. He added, “Maybe we won’t have to use it.”
The warships were dispatched after Trump warned Iran’s leaders against the killing of protestors, who began demonstrating in December. The Islamic Republic has seen the largest protests against the hardline regime in years, resulting in mass executions of individuals detained by Tehran.
ABC News, citing data from the Human Rights Activists News Agency, reported that as of Sunday, more than 41,280 Iranians had been arrested, and the death toll stood at 5,848.
Even as the CSG-3 headed to the region, the Iranian military has remained defiant.
“The Islamic Revolutionary Guards and dear Iran stand more ready than ever, finger on the trigger, to execute the orders and directives of the Commander-in-Chief,” warned Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps commander General Mohammad Pakpour.
F-35s In The Airwings
The United States Navy remains stretched thin across multiple hotspots, yet, USS Abraham Lincoln may not be the only carrier sent to the Middle East. Last week, the USS George H.W. Bush (CVN-77) departed her homeport of Naval Station Norfolk and is now operating in the Atlantic Ocean, bound for Europe.
Both CVN-72 and CVN-77 have embarked carrier air wings that operate the Boeing F/A-18E/F Super Hornet, the EA-18G Growler electronic warfare variant, and the fifth-generation Lockheed Martin F-35C Lightning II.
U.S. Air Force F-35A stealth fighters, the conventional takeoff and landing variants, played a leading role in last June’s Operation Midnight Hammer, the targeted strike on Iranian nuclear facilities at Natanz, Fordow, and Isfahan. The aircraft were the first to penetrate the Islamic Republic’s airspace, and performed a Suppression of Enemy Air Defenses that cleared a path for the Northrop B-2 Spirit bombers.
An F-35C Lightning II, attached to Marine Fighter Attack Squadron (VMFA) 314, launches from the flight deck of Nimitz-class aircraft carrier USS Abraham Lincoln (CVN 72) on Jan. 9, 2026
U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist Seaman Samuel Evarts
There are currently U.S. Air Force F-35As based at Al Udeid Air Base in Qatar, but having additional carrier-based F-35Cs might be crucial to any mission to strike Iran again.
Spread Thin
The deployment of CVN-72 to the Middle East has left the Western Pacific without the presence of a U.S. Navy carrier, at least temporarily. The forward-deployed USS George Washington (CVN-73) returned to her homeport of Yokosuka, Japan, just before the Christmas holidays. The carrier is now undergoing scheduled maintenance.
However, the fourth Nimitz-class nuclear-powered supercarrier, USS Theodore Roosevelt (CVN-71), departed Naval Air Station North Island, San Diego, on January 21, resuming operational activities after completing maintenance and training.
The U.S. Navy hasn’t announced where the carrier will head, but all signs point to the Western Pacific to fill the gap left by CVN-72.