The U.S. Navy's aircraft carrier USS Abraham Lincoln entered Apra Harbor in Guam on September 19, 2026, following a 302-day deployment across the Indo-Pacific. The vessel, accompanied by its air wing and the guided-missile destroyer USS Frank Petersen, concluded a transit that began in the South China Sea and passed through the Sulu Sea. The stop marked the first time the carrier strike group had returned to U.S. sovereign territory in nine months, allowing personnel limited on-base liberty. The deployment, which supported Operation Epic Fury and ongoing operations against Iran, represents the second-longest carrier deployment of the post-Cold War era, trailing only the 326-day deployment of USS Gerald R. Ford in May 2026. Lincoln’s current voyage follows a prior port visit to Pattaya, Thailand, earlier in September, and precedes its anticipated arrival on the U.S. West Coast in early October. While Lincoln and its accompanying ships have begun their return, two destroyers, USS Spruance and USS Michael Murphy, remain deployed in the Arabian Sea. Navy leadership has indicated plans for sustained Middle East operations, with the carrier USS Theodore Roosevelt and its strike group recently informed of an eight-month deployment timeline to support extended regional objectives.