After Months In Hormuz, USS Abraham Lincoln Limps Into Port Covered In Rust

The USS Abraham Lincoln sailed into a Thai port on Wednesday looking nothing like the warship that left San Diego last November. Its hull, nearly 1,100 feet long, was streaked with rust from one end to the other.

The sight surprised onlookers, but naval experts say it was only to be expected. The aircraft carrier had just completed 286 days at sea, according to the Navy, including months of combat and blockade duty against Iran in the Middle East.

Carl Schuster, a former US Navy captain, told CNN, "Rust along the waterline is not unusual on a ship that has spent 60 days or more of operations continuously at sea."

Photo Credit: AFP

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He explained that fixing the problem is simply not possible while a ship is still at sea, particularly during active combat. Crews would need to be lowered down to the waterline, sand away the rust, apply two coats of rust-preventative primer, and finish with two coats of naval grey paint.

"Based on what I am seeing, you are looking at about 30 days of preservation work to remove all the rust," he told CNN.

Some of that work could begin during the ship's stop in Thailand, he added, though only the most urgent areas are likely to be tackled during a short visit.

The Lincoln docked at the port of Laem Chabang on the Gulf of Thailand, south of Bangkok, on Wednesday. The visit is expected to run for several days and marks the crew's first proper rest-and-relaxation break after a gruelling stretch at sea.

According to Schuster, priorities will be set accordingly. "They will do only high-priority work during a seven-day port visit. The rust on the bow and forward hull areas will be done first because they take the most abuse when the ship is moving, and they absorb the corrosive actions that accompany moving through salt waters, particularly choppy seas," he told CNN.

Left untreated, rust does not stay contained, Schuster warned.

The visible corrosion is not the only issue to have emerged from the Lincoln's extended deployment. There have also been reports of low morale linked to supply shortages, along with at least one incident of a crew member going overboard.

US President Donald Trump, however, has brushed aside such concerns.