Aboard the USS George Washington, young sailors adjust to war with Iran
ABOARD USS GEORGE WASHINGTON, Oct 3 -
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sailors → adjust → Iran
An emergency alert blares from a loudspeaker, and Damon Dennard and other sailors on the deck of the aircraft carrier USS George Washington are scrambling.
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Dennard → blare → carrier
Dennard, 23, is readying bombs for loading onto aircraft as his crewmates race to their positions.
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crewmates → ready → positions
"It has been eventful," says Dennard, an aviation ordnanceman airman apprentice.
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Dennard → say → ?
Once the alert ends, he takes a breath, sits on one of the bombs and jokes that he probably expected an easier deployment.
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he → end → deployment
Dennard was one of dozens of sailors Reuters spoke with in September on a rare visit to a US warship that is central to the Iran war.
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that → speak → war
The visit began at a particularly tense moment, just three days after the US military blew up five Iranian oil tankers in retaliation for Iran targeting a US Navy warship.
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Iran → begin → warship
The George Washington's mission near the Strait of Hormuz — which has no defined end-date — came as a surprise to the crew, who were deployed from Japan at the end of August to relieve another carrier.
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who → have → carrier
The aircraft carrier is effectively a floating city of around 5,000 personnel, each with their own mission, from Majesta Ochoa, who operates a cash register, to Lieutenant Commander Brody Samaha, a "shooter" who helps oversee the launch of aircraft from the carrier's catapults.
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who → float → catapults
But there is a sense of synchronization as the sailors go about their jobs, crew say.
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crew → be → jobs
"It's a dance, with lots of people checking each other," Samaha says, before adding that the flight deck is also a "very dangerous place to be.
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deck → check → other
Breana Royston, a night aircraft handling officer, or 'NACHO,' has a unique perspective over the dangerous maneuvering on the flight deck.
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Royston → handle → deck
Her job is to supervise aircraft movement, including bringing fighter jets up to the flight deck and back down to the hangar bay via massive elevators.
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job → supervise → elevators
To do that, she uses what's known in Navy parlance as a "ouija board" — a real-time model of the deck, with miniature aircraft all lined up in their current positions.
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what → do → positions
It looks a little like a strategy board game.
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It → look → game
"We've been on our toes the last week, maneuvering and everything — with everything that's going on," Royston says, adding it's been "kind of crazy, really busy."
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it → go → everything
The Iranian government has repeatedly condemned US military actions in the Strait of Hormuz.
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government → condemn → Hormuz
On September 25, the Iranian foreign minister said the insecurity prevailing in the strait was the "direct result of the aggressive actions of the United States and the Israeli regime."
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insecurity → say → States
The war began in February with joint strikes on Iranian targets by the US and Israel.
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war → begin → US
US President Donald Trump has said many times the conflict would soon be over, but as it persisted for longer than initially expected, the Navy turned to the George Washington to relieve another carrier, the USS Abraham Lincoln.
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Navy → say → carrier
In August, in response to reports of deteriorating conditions, low morale and suicide attempts on the Lincoln, at sea since November 2025, US Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth said the accounts "misrepresented" the reality, praising sailors who endure austere conditions.
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who → deteriorate → conditions
Still, extended deployments can pose enormous strain on crews’ mental health, particularly in wartime, and are a challenge for any navy.
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deployments → pose → navy
Sailors must maintain a state of alert and readiness, heightened in the case of the George Washington due to the threat of drone and missile attack from Iran.
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Sailors → maintain → Iran
"Morale is really important to us," said Rear Admiral Jeffrey Heames, the commander of Carrier Strike Group 5.
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Heames → say → Group
Heames talked about ensuring the ability of the crew to contact home and receive mail.
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Heames → talk → mail
"Some of those things affect how sailors hold up out in this kind of environment," Heames said.
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Heames → affect → environment
Reuters spoke with Seaman Deandre Cook as he checked in with his wife back home on a video call.
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he → speak → call
She was holding one of their young daughters on her hip.
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She → hold → hip
It was hard being away from his family, Cook said, but added: "The distance makes the relationship stronger."
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relationship → say → family
Reuters was given access to the USS George Washington under the condition that no operational details would be disclosed, including the exact location of the aircraft carrier.
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details → give → carrier
GROWING UP
As jets thundered off the carrier's deck above them, hundreds of members of the George Washington's crew gathered for a ceremony to mark the 25th anniversary of the September 11, 2001 attacks — an event many of them were too young to remember.
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many → grow → them
Al Qaeda's attacks on New York and Washington propelled the US into two decades of war that sent troops to Afghanistan, Iraq, Syria and elsewhere.
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that → propel → Afghanistan
Many supporters of Trump had hoped Middle East wars were a thing of the past.
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wars → hop → past
After a sailor sang the national anthem, the chaplain on board, Ben Garrett, delivered a prayer as the assembled crew bowed their heads.
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crew → sing → heads
"Help us honor those who have gone before us," Garrett said.
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Garrett → help → us
Garrett later told Reuters that many of the crew members are still learning the basics of growing up, including skills like patience, managing relationships and career expectations.
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many → tell → relationships
"A huge percentage of this ship are between the ages of 19 and 24 years old," said Garrett, a Roman Catholic priest.
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Garrett → say → years
"So they're trying to figure out being an adult while they're out here.
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they → try → ?
"
Sometimes sailors enlist to get away from a small town or a situation back home, Garrett added.
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Garrett → enlist → town
"But then they come here and they realize that some of the things they might have been trying to get away from, they brought it with them," Garrett said.
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Garrett → come → them
…and 6 more, not listed.
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