US commander says mental health a 'priority' on USS Lincoln
Following reports of poor conditions and possible suicide attempts aboard the USS Lincoln, a US Navy commander said mental health has become a leadership priority. The USS George Washington is due to arrive within about a week to replace it.
US Pacific Fleet commander Adm Samuel Cooper said mental health has become a leadership priority aboard the aircraft carrier USS Lincoln, after reports that crew members' psychological wellbeing had deteriorated during a prolonged deployment. Families of sailors have expressed concern, and some crew members reportedly attempted to jump overboard.
In a statement issued Sunday, Adm Cooper said mental health should be treated with the same attention as physical and spiritual health, and praised the ship's leadership for prioritising crew resilience. The Navy has denied there is a mental health crisis aboard the vessel, which carries about 5,000 people, though it acknowledged supply challenges last week.
According to reports last week from Military Times and Stars & Stripes, conditions aboard the Lincoln have included poor sanitation, infrequent port calls, broken plumbing and shortages of fresh food. The deployment, originally scheduled to end in May, has been extended multiple times, with sailors reportedly at sea without a port call for more than 200 consecutive days.
Thirteen Democratic senators on the Senate Armed Services Committee sent a letter Saturday to Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth criticising the lengthy deployment and demanding answers. Hegseth last week called the reports of conditions "completely misrepresented," while President Donald Trump dismissed suggestions that sailors had spent too long at sea.
Maryland Governor Wes Moore, a Democrat and Army veteran, told CNN the reported conditions were "heartbreaking" and called for more compassion from the president. The USS George Washington is reportedly en route to relieve the Lincoln and could arrive in the region within about a week.
