The US aircraft carrier Abraham Lincoln returned to the port of San Diego on Thursday, 8 October 2026, after 321 days on a mission in the war with the Islamic Republic. According to the text of the citation awarded to the strike group, the ships accompanying Lincoln on this mission sank 64 Islamic Republic warships and fired 450 Tomahawk cruise missiles at targets in Iran.
According to the Associated Press, Pete Hegseth, the US Secretary of War, flew onto the carrier's deck on Wednesday, 7 October, a day before its return, and presented the crew with the Presidential Unit Citation, the highest award given to a US military unit. The citation was awarded for 40 days of combat operations and the naval blockade of the Islamic Republic under Operation Epic Fury.
Statistics of the Lincoln's operations in the Iran-US war
According to the Associated Press and the defence outlet Defence Industry Europe, from February to August the Lincoln strike group flew 3,693 combat sorties and dropped about 1.37 million pounds of ordnance on targets. According to the same figures, 77 suicide drones and 21 anti-ship cruise missiles of the Islamic Republic were destroyed before reaching their targets, and several fast boats and explosives-laden vessels were also repelled.
The group's combat operations began on 28 February 2026, and after 40 days of continuous operations, the carrier was deployed in the naval blockade of the Islamic Republic in and around the Strait of Hormuz. With 265 continuous days at sea, the Lincoln set a new record for US aircraft carriers. The carrier George Washington took its place in July–August.
According to Pentagon figures, the Islamic Republic's navy lost at least 64 warships in this war against the Lincoln strike group alone.
Strain on the crew and the continuing blockade
The Lincoln's long mission was accompanied by reports of psychological strain on the crew and shortages of food and hygiene items. According to the Associated Press, the US Navy at first played these reports down but later acknowledged some of the supply problems and told members of Congress that eight sailors had attempted suicide during the mission. In his remarks Hegseth rejected efforts to portray the carrier as a symbol of failure.
The Lincoln is the second aircraft carrier to receive this citation after a long mission in the war with the Islamic Republic; the carrier Gerald Ford returned in April–May after 326 days. Despite Donald Trump's promise not to attack Iran before the midterm elections, the naval blockade continues, the carriers George Washington and George H.W. Bush are in the region, and the carrier Theodore Roosevelt may join them from late October. Meanwhile, reports point to the Islamic Republic preserving its missile and drone production capacity.
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