The United States Navy currently has no aircraft deployed in the Middle East, as the Nimitz-class nuclear-powered USS Abraham Lincoln (CVN-73) departed the region last month while USS Harry S. Truman (CVN-75) arrived in Marseille, France, on Saturday for a belated Thanksgiving celebration.
The lack of U.S. carriers was also noted by the Iran-back Houthi militants in Yemen, with the group's leadership claiming victory and even suggesting that the U.S. Navy was driven away in defeat.
The Houthis may come to regret such claims, especially as the U.S. has targeted the group in airstrikes – including one in October that involved Northrop B-2 Spirit bombers that flew Continental U.S. (CONUS) to CONUS missions to Yemen to hit the terrorist's positions.
It was nearly a year ago, in January 2024 that the U.S. and UK first launched airstrikes against Houthi targets after months of missile and drone attacks on commercial shipping in the Red Sea, Gulf of Aden, and Arabian Sea.
The U.S. Navy has rotated several carriers to the region, and it is likely that CVN-75 will be deployed to the Eastern Mediterranean later this month, and could transit the Suez Canal and enter the Red Sea. That was the original destination for the carrier, but it took a "detour" to the North Sea and recently concluded a joint NATO operation near the Arctic.
No Carrier, No Problem
Over the weekend a pair of U.S. Navy destroyers also proved successful in countering Houthi-launched attacks against commercial shipping.
"U.S. Navy destroyers USS Stockdale (DDG 106) and the USS O'Kane (DDG 77) successfully defeated a range of Houthi-launched weapons while transiting the Gulf of Aden from November 30 to December 1. The destroyers were escorting three U.S. owned, operated, flagged merchant vessels and the reckless attacks resulted in no injuries and no damage to any vessels, civilian or U.S. Naval," U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM) announced.
CENTCOM added that DDG-106 and DDG-77 were able to shoot three anti-ship ballistic missiles (ASBMs) as well as an anti-ship cruise missile (ASCM). In addition, the two Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyers also shot down three one-way attack uncrewed aerial systems (OWA UAS). USS Stockdale countered a similar attack earlier in November.
"These actions reflect the ongoing commitment of CENTCOM forces to protect U.S. personnel, regional partners, and international shipping, against attacks by Iran-backed Houthis," CENTCOM confirmed.
Although the U.S. Navy and CENTCOM didn't identify the merchant shipping that came under attack, a Houthi spokesperson claimed the commercial vessels included the Stena Impeccable, which Captain reported is "a tanker participating in the U.S. Maritime Administration's Tanker Security Program," while the other merchant ships were the containership Maersk Saratoga and bulk carrier Liberty Grace.
The Houthi militants have vowed to carry out the attacks as long as Israel remains involved in its campaign in Gaza, which was launched following the Hamas terrorist attack on southern Israel on October 7, 2023.
Peter Suciu is a Michigan-based writer. He has contributed to more than four dozen magazines, newspapers, and websites with over 3,200 published pieces over a twenty-year career in journalism. He regularly writes about military hardware, firearms history, cybersecurity, politics, and international affairs. Peter is also a Contributing Writer for Forbes and Clearance Jobs. You can follow him on Twitter: @PeterSuciu. You can email the author: Editor@nationalinterest.org.
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