The United States Navy has shot down an Iranian drone that approached a US aircraft carrier operating in the Gulf, according to reporting by Reuters.
Citing a US official, Reuters reported that the unmanned aerial vehicle was intercepted after flying close to a US Navy carrier in international waters. Reuters national security correspondent Idrees Ali, who said the drone had approached the USS Abraham Lincoln before being shot down.
As of the time of reporting, there has been no official public confirmation from the US Navy or the Pentagon through their own statements or online channels, and Iranian authorities have not commented on the reported incident.
The USS Abraham Lincoln is a Nimitz-class nuclear-powered aircraft carrier and one of the largest warships ever built. Displacing more than 100,000 tons, the carrier is powered by two nuclear reactors and can operate at sea for decades without refuelling. It typically carries around 90 fixed-wing aircraft and helicopters and is protected by a layered defensive system including radar, electronic warfare systems, close-in weapon systems, and escorting surface combatants.
According to open-source reporting, the carrier was redeployed to the Middle East in late January amid rising tensions between Iran and the United States, after previously operating in the Indo-Pacific region. By the end of January, it was entering the Strait of Hormuz, a strategically sensitive waterway through which a significant proportion of global energy supplies transit.
US aircraft carriers operating in the region routinely face surveillance by Iranian drones and aircraft. While many such encounters are monitored without incident, US forces operate under standing rules of engagement that allow defensive action if an aircraft is assessed to pose a potential threat to the ship or its air wing.
No details were provided on the type of drone involved, how close it came to the carrier, or what weapon system was used to bring it down. It also remains unclear whether the drone was armed or conducting surveillance.
Well that’s a whole lot of Fluff.
Several sources are reporting that the drone was shot down by an F-35. If true, it’s a US Marine F-35C from VMFA-314 “Black Knights”.
To say in the article that USS Abraham Lincoln ‘can operate at sea for decades without refuelling’ is not an accurate narrative because although the reactors themselves may be able to keep going for ages, the ship herself literally cannot stay at sea for decades. All Aircraft Carriers need periodic maintenance and refits, even nuclear powered ones. That’s why America has 11 of them, so they can be rotated.