— Update: According to a New York Times report, supply problems with the USS Abraham Lincoln began after Iran, at the beginning of the war, heavily damaged the U.S. Navy base in Bahrain (NSA Bahrain) and disabled a logistics center that the Navy had relied on for decades.

With other ports in the Persian Gulf vulnerable to Iranian attacks, the Pentagon moved its main regional supply hub to Diego Garcia, about 3,540 kilometers (2,200 miles) away from the U.S. aircraft carrier strike groups operating in the Gulf of Oman. The much longer supply route led to shortages and logistical problems aboard the supporting aircraft carriers conducting operations against Iran.

Lincoln has now spent nearly nine months in the sea with no port calls for leave, while reports have emerged of shortages of initial supplies and worsening crew morale and mental health. Bahrain and Fujairah, which are normally used for aircraft carrier port calls, remain within range of Iran’s missiles.

After Iran made Diego Garcia the new logistics hub, it targeted it on March 20 with two medium-range ballistic missiles; one fell short of its target in the Indian Ocean, and the other was intercepted by a U.S. Navy warship.

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