The USS Abraham Lincoln will leave San Diego after recently returning from a near-record deployment in the Middle East, military officials said.
U.S. Pacific Fleet announced the homeport change Monday on its X account.
The Abraham Lincoln’s move to Bremerton, Wa., was planned well before the ship left for its record-setting deployment on Nov. 21, 2025.
Nimitz-class aircraft carriers require periodic maintenance and upgrades. Bremerton is home to the only dry dock large enough to accommodate the ships on the West Coast.
While the Navy said in its statement the ship’s move is “permanent,” carriers undergoing maintenance in Bremerton frequently return to their original home ports after maintenance is complete.
The San Diego-based carriers USS Carl Vinson and USS Theodore Roosevelt each returned to San Diego after stints in the Bremerton shipyard in 2019 and 2021, respectively.
The ship returned to San Diego on Oct. 8 after supporting military
operations during the U.S. and Israeli war against Iran, dubbed Operation Epic
Fury. It has a complement of more than 5,000 sailors and Marines.
It was at sea without a port call for 286 days, the second-longest
deployment since the Vietnam War, with more than 300 consecutive days overseas.
The USS Gerald R. Ford set the record for longest deployment by an aircraft carrier at 326 days, which ended earlier this year. The long deployment led to reports of low morale and mental health issues on the part of some crew members, and complaints by some in Congress. California Gov. Gavin Newsom recently announced that sailors and Marines who served on the carrier were offered mental health services.
The Navy added that throughout the home port shift process, sailors and their families will have access to resources to prepare for the transition.
``Home port shifts are part of the Navy's continued commitment to the
strategic dispersal of ships,'' the Navy said in a statement announcing the
change.
``Regularly scheduled depot-level maintenance maximizes the lifespan of
our Navy vessels and keeps our fleets lethal, modern, and ready to defend the
nation. The work conducted during the maintenance period will maximize the
lifespan of Abraham Lincoln and re-establish the carrier at the highest state
of material and combat readiness.''
