US Navy brings carrier home but three destroyers still awaiting orders
The US Navy has announced the return of the aircraft carrier USS Abraham Lincoln after a punishing nine‑month deployment, but it has not said whether the three destroyers that escorted the carrier will also be relieved. The silence has left roughly 1,000 sailors across those ships unsure when — or if — they will head home.
Acting Navy Secretary Hung Cao told the public on 14 August that the Lincoln's sailors and Marines would come home. The announcement made no reference to the destroyers operating alongside the carrier: the USS Frank E. Petersen Jr., the USS Michael Murphy and the USS Spruance, according to a Navy official who spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorised to discuss the matter publicly.
Those destroyers have been deployed with the carrier since late 2025, the US Naval Institute reported. As of Monday, no orders had been issued to relieve the three ships, the official told MS NOW, creating confusion among crews whose stated mission has been to protect the carrier.
- Acting Navy Secretary announced Lincoln crew would return on 14 August.
- No public orders issued for relief of the three accompanying destroyers as of 18 August.
- Families were told at a town hall on 6 August the strike group would return together; that position appears to be contradicted by the later announcement.
At an in‑person town hall on 6 August at Naval Air Station North Island in San Diego, officers told families the strike group was a composite unit and that the Navy intended to bring the entire formation home together, four people who attended the meeting said. By contrast, Pentagon officials declined to tell MS NOW whether the three destroyers would leave the region with the Lincoln.
Destroyers perform a different — and often more exposed — role than a carrier. They carry air and missile defence systems as well as sonar and torpedoes for anti‑submarine warfare, and can launch Tomahawk and Harpoon cruise missiles to strike surface or land targets. But their central task in a carrier strike group is to shield the carrier itself — a mission that becomes uncertain when the carrier it escorts is due to depart.
“They told us our mission was to ‘escort and protect the Lincoln,’” said a sailor serving on one of the destroyers, speaking on condition of anonymity because they were not authorised to discuss operations publicly. The sailor added it was “wonderful” the Lincoln’s crew were returning home but said confusion had spread across his ship over what their mission is now.
There are practical and human consequences to the lack of clarity. Extended deployments and supply pressures have been a recurring concern for the US fleet in the region. The three destroyers’ crews have spent months at sea alongside the carrier; with the carrier scheduled to be relieved, sailors told MS NOW they do not know whether their tasking will change, whether they will be reassigned, or how long they may remain deployed.
| Ship | Role highlighted |
|---|---|
| USS Frank E. Petersen Jr. | Guided‑missile destroyer, air/missile defence and ASW |
| USS Michael Murphy | Guided‑missile destroyer, missile strikes and escort |
| USS Spruance | Guided‑missile destroyer, escort and anti‑submarine warfare |
The development underscores challenges in communicating operational decisions to sailors and their families during complex deployments. It also raises questions about force posture: if destroyer escorts remain while the carrier they protected departs, the ships’ tasks and risk exposure could shift rapidly.
For families who were told at a recent town hall that the strike group would return together, the sudden discrepancy between that message and the later announcement has heightened frustration and uncertainty. Senior Navy officials were not reported to have provided a timetable for the destroyers’ relief at the time of the carrier announcement.
The situation remains fluid. The Navy has not provided public orders for the three destroyers’ relief, and officials at the Pentagon declined to comment to MS NOW on whether the ships will depart with the Lincoln. For sailors aboard the destroyers, the end of the carrier’s deployment has not yet brought closure to their own prolonged tour of duty.
Local readers should note that despite the ship’s name, these developments concern the US Navy and operations in the Middle East; the situation will be followed for any further statements from the Pentagon or Navy leadership that clarify the destroyers’ status.
