CENTCOM Confirmed That Three Supercarriers Are In The Middle East

BusinessAerospace & DefenseCENTCOM Confirmed That Three Supercarriers Are In The Middle EastByPeter Suciu,Contributor.Forbes contributors publish independent expert analyses and insights. Peter Suciu covers trends in the world of aerospace and defense.Follow AuthorApr 23, 2026, 07:30pm EDTFlight operations aboard the USS George H.W. Bush continue as the carrier heads to the Middle East (U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist Seaman Soley Reed)There are now three United States Navy nuclear-powered aircraft carriers operating in the U.S. Central Command's area of responsibility. CENTCOM confirmed in a post on X on Thursday afternoon that the 10th and final Nimitz-class supercarrier, the USS George H.W. Bush (CVN-77), has entered the Indian Ocean.CVN-77 joins the USS Abraham Lincoln (CVN-72), which is now in the Arabian Sea, and the U.S. Navy's newest and largest supercarrier, the USS Gerald R. Ford (CVN-78), operating in the Red Sea after transiting the Suez Canal from the Mediterranean.As previously reported, the USS George H.W. Bush may have taken the "long way" around Africa, likely to avoid the Bab el-Mandeb Strait that connects the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden. No U.S. Navy aircraft has transited the Bab el-Mandeb Strait since the USS Dwight D. Eisenhower (CVN-69) in December 2023. CVN-77 began her current deployment on March 31, 2026, departing from Naval Station Norfolk, Va.It is unclear how long the United States Navy will maintain three carrier strike groups in the Middle East, but their presence greatly increases U.S. naval firepower in the region. The United States announced a naval blockade of Iranian ports on April 13, and according to CENTCOM, at least 33 commercial vessels have been directed to turn around or return to Iranian ports since the blockade was initiated.As of Thursday, USS Gerald R. Ford has been deployed for 303 days, the longest time at sea for a U.S. Navy aircraft carrier since the 332-day deployment of U...