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USS Gerald R. Ford Back at Sea After Repairs as USS George H.W. Bush Deploys Toward Middle East

The moves signal a drive to sustain carrier airpower in the region despite a recent shipboard fire.

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U.S. Sailors conduct routine flight deck operations on the flight deck of the world’s largest aircraft carrier, USS Gerald R. Ford (CVN 78), while underway in the Eastern Mediterranean Sea, March 22, 2026. Gerald R. Ford is on a scheduled deployment in the U.S. 6th Fleet area of operations to support the warfighting effectiveness, lethality and readiness of U.S. Naval Forces Europe Africa, and defend U.S., Allied and partner interests in the region. (U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 2nd Class Tajh Payne)
Carrier Air Wing 8 F/A-18E Super Hornets attached to Strike Fighter Squadron 37 fly by the world's largest aircraft carrier, USS Gerald R. Ford (CVN 78), during the squadron's in-flight change of command ceremony, August 1, 2025. Gerald R. Ford, a first-in-class nuclear aircraft carrier and deployed flagship of Carrier Strike Group Twelve, is on a scheduled deployment in the U.S. 6th Fleet area of operations to support the warfighting effectiveness, lethality, and readiness of U.S. Naval Forces Europe-Africa, and defend U.S., Allied, and partner interests in the region. (U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist Seaman Brianna Barnett)
SPLIT, CROATIA - MARCH 29: A view of the American aircraft carrier USS Gerald Ford arrived in Split as part of a planned visit and technical maintenance after a months-long mission and war operations in the Middle East on March 29, 2026 in Split, Croatia. (Photo by Samir Jordamovic/Anadolu via Getty Images)

Overview

  • USS Gerald R. Ford left Split, Croatia, on Thursday after a five‑day repair and resupply stop, with the Navy saying the carrier remains ready for full mission tasking and not disclosing its next destination.
  • The George H.W. Bush Carrier Strike Group departed Norfolk on Tuesday, March 31, for a scheduled deployment that officials and reporting say is expected to take it to the Middle East, with destroyers Ross, Donald Cook, and Mason in escort and Carrier Air Wing 7 embarked.
  • A laundry‑room fire on Ford on March 12 damaged berthing and displaced roughly 600 sailors, and the crew resumed combat sorties two days after the blaze, according to the Chief of Naval Operations.
  • Repairs in Souda Bay, Crete, restored seven berthing compartments and the crew took on more fixes and supplies in Croatia as the ship’s deployment pushes toward a record‑length 11 months that senior leaders say strains sailors and equipment.
  • U.S. officials have indicated the Navy could keep multiple carriers in the CENTCOM region for the foreseeable future, a plan that faces transit risks in the Red Sea from Houthi attacks and ongoing questions about sustaining munitions and tempo.