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The Sydney Morning Herald
· collected 2026-09-24 · by Greg Jaffe, Eric Schmitt
Eight sailors assigned to the USS Abraham Lincoln strike group attempted suicide during its extended deployment, which lasted over 300 days at sea. Acting Navy Secretary Hung Cao disclosed this information in response to inquiries by Senator Kirsten Gillibrand. The letter also mentioned that one sailor went overboard in early August and was rescued, while another attempt was thwarted in March. Senator Gillibrand criticized President Trump and the Pentagon for underestimating the strain on the sailors, highlighting concerns about their mental health and working conditions during such a long deployment.
Written locally by qwen2.5:14b on 2026-09-24,
using this article's own text rather than the other coverage of the
same event (that is the story summary below).
Story summary
In early August, Acting US Navy Secretary Hung Cao disclosed in a letter to Senator Kirsten Gillibrand that eight sailors from the USS Abraham Lincoln strike group attempted suicide during their deployment supporting operations against Iran. The letter detailed attempts ranging from jumping overboard and being rescued by shipmates or helicopters. The Lincoln crew, comprising about 5000 personnel, has been at sea for over 300 days since January, setting a navy record. Gillibrand criticized President Donald Trump and the Pentagon for underplaying the mental strain on sailors, while defense officials defended conditions aboard the ship as supportive despite reported morale issues.
Written for “Suicides On USS Lincoln Deployment” on 2026-10-05,
grounded in this article and the 4 other(s) covering the same event.
Eight sailors who were part of the USS Abraham Lincoln strike group attempted to take their lives during its long deployment in support of the war against Iran, according to a letter from the US Navy.
uncertain
who → attempt → Navy
One of those sailors assigned to the Lincoln’s air wing “went overboard from the ship” in early August and was recovered by one of the carrier’s rescue helicopters, Hung Cao, the acting navy secretary, said in the letter.
asserted
Cao → assign → letter
A second sailor attempted to go overboard in March but was stopped by shipmates, Cao wrote.
asserted
Cao → attempt → shipmates
The new information about the crew aboard the Lincoln and the other ships in the strike group was released to Democratic Senator Kirsten Gillibrand, who pressed the navy for information about the crew.
asserted
who → release → crew
The letter about the attempted suicides was reported earlier by CNN.
asserted
letter → attempt → CNN
Gillibrand criticised US President Donald Trump and the Pentagon on Wednesday (Washington time) for downplaying the strain on the crew.
asserted
Gillibrand → criticise → crew
The response from the navy proved that the conditions the sailors faced aboard the Lincoln were “serious and deteriorating”, she said in a statement.
asserted
she → prove → statement
The Lincoln, with its crew of about 5000 sailors, has spent more than 300 days at sea and recently set a navy record for the longest time at sea without making a port call.
asserted
Lincoln → spend → call
After stopping for a week earlier this month in Thailand, the San Diego-based ship arrived in Guam on Saturday.
asserted
ship → stop → Saturday
In total, the strike group consists of about 6000 sailors.
asserted
group → consist → sailors
Last month, Trump dismissed concerns about difficult conditions reported aboard the ship.
asserted
Trump → dismiss → ship
Asked whether he was concerned about the crew’s mental health and whether he thought the deployment had gone on too long, the president said: “No. No. No.”
asserted
president → ask → health
He added: “Not nearly long enough.”
asserted
He → add → ?
Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth also downplayed the grim conditions aboard the Lincoln, saying the situation had been “misrepresented”.
asserted
situation → downplay → Lincoln
Gillibrand said Trump and Hegseth had dismissed the sailors’ concerns “with open disrespect”.
asserted
Trump → say → disrespect
“That this administration can find endless taxpayer dollars for bombs, ballrooms and billionaires, but cannot take care of our service members, is completely unacceptable,” she said.
asserted
she → find → members
Rear Admiral Donald J. Guter, a retired top judge advocate general for the navy from 2000 to 2002, described the eight suicide attempts as a “disturbingly high number indicating a serious stress level”.
asserted
Guter → retire → level
Admiral Brad Cooper, who oversees US operations in the Middle East, insisted in a statement posted on social media in August that “the Lincoln currently has among the lowest number of cases related to mental health” among the navy’s 11 active aircraft carriers.
asserted
Lincoln → oversee → carriers
“That doesn’t mean that all is perfect,” Cooper acknowledged.
asserted
Cooper → mean → ?
He said that a long deployment at sea “is uniquely challenging and tough, and every single one of us, including me, reacts to stressors in different ways”.
asserted
one → say → ways
This article originally appeared in The New York Times.
asserted
article → appear → Times
Get a note directly from our foreign correspondents on what’s making headlines around the world.
asserted
what → get → world
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