The acting US Chief of Naval Operations has confirmed that the US Navy recently conducted the largest airstrike ever launched from an aircraft carrier, with carrier-based aircraft dropping 125,000 pounds of ordnance on terrorist targets in Somalia.
According to Admiral James Kilby, the strike was carried out on 1 February 2025 by aircraft from the USS Harry S. Truman (CVN 75) while it was operating in the Red Sea. Kilby, speaking at a Council on Foreign Relations event, stated: “The USS Harry S. Truman launched the largest carrier airstrike in the history of the world — 125,000 pounds — from a single aircraft carrier into Somalia.”
The air operation reportedly involved 16 F/A-18 Super Hornets targeting Islamic State leadership in a series of cave complexes, resulting in the deaths of more than a dozen militants. The mission was one of many conducted by the Truman strike group during its extended deployment in the Middle East.
In addition to operations against ISIS-Somalia and Al-Shabaab, the carrier group played a significant role in defending maritime shipping lanes from Houthi missile and drone attacks launched from Yemen. Kilby said the Truman group had “engaged 160 drones and missiles” during its deployment and had conducted “670 strikes in Yemen” to counter the threat.
Kilby added: “We’ve seen an increase in how the Houthis are acting. Sometimes I hear people speak dismissively of them. They’re not China, but they are a threat. And they are hunting our ships.”
The deployment was not without incident. In December, a friendly fire incident saw one of the carrier’s escorts accidentally shoot down a Super Hornet. In February, the Truman collided with a commercial vessel in the Mediterranean, and in April, two separate mishaps resulted in Super Hornets falling into the sea.
The USS Truman has since departed the Red Sea and is currently taking part in NATO maritime exercises in the Mediterranean Sea before returning to its homeport in Norfolk, Virginia.
Collided with a commercial vessel??
I’d missed that! How’s that possible? In harbour?
ukdefencejournal .org.uk/american-supercarrier-collides-with-vessel-in-mediterranean/
ukdefencejournal .org.uk/image-shows-damage-to-american-carrier-after-collision/
The captain was relieved of command as a consequence.
Had to put some spaces in the link otherwise it wouldn’t let me post.
A collision
One plane lost due to blue on blue
2 planes ost overboard
Just as well it was the Houthi’s with no navy and not China!
When you work at intensity crazy+ expect accidents to happen.
The great weakness of having part time QEC airwings is the skills fade and lack of intensity.
And that’s why we have VSTOL carriers. The work up is much quicker and simpler. The pilots are day/night deck qualified in just a few short days.
Whilst that is true, it would be a whole other ball game getting used to 36 jets and cabs flying intensively off a QEC.
Just for clarity, the USN is now so confident in their automated landing system (I heard it called magic carpet) that they have removed the carrier capable requirement for the T45 replacement (ie their students won’t need to carrier qualify before joining a squadron)
125,000 lbs of bombs and twelve dead? precision strike…
About 10400 lb per hit, I wondered about that too.
They go after infrastructure, not just people.
To be fair the deadest people ever though….
Every so slight case of overkill.
What do you expect with Yanks. More chance of them hitting allies than the enemy.
What the hell has a civil war in Africa got to do with Yanks? More oil, precious minerals involved?
Surely one B52 can carry 75,000
Might struggle getting one off of a carrier though
This is stupendous capability being demonstrated by the worlds largest, most powerful Carrier. Exactly the way to showcase some 20 billion $$$’s of American real estate, weapons and aircraft sent half way around the world to level a state of the art complex of caves rather than wasting money sending a couple of B52’s.
“God bless America, leaders of the free world”.
Such a large payload for maybe a dozen deaths, that seems like value for money and not purely a news story with almost zero actual impact on anything.
Another exhailent article written by the author, Craig Langford.
“Venting off steam”.