The lone US Navy oil replenishment ship in the Mideast that recently filled up the USS Abraham Lincoln aircraft carrier has sustained damage as Iran-backed terror groups continue to lay siege to the region, officials say.
The USNS Big Horn, which resupplied the aircraft carrier earlier this month, was towed to safety and anchored off the coast of Oman, with an investigation under way, Navy officials said, declining to elaborate further on the incident.
A US Naval Institute report suggested the Big Horn could have sustained damage as it was maneuvering around a shallow area of the Arabian Sea that is crowded with small finishing boats and vessels.
None of the terror groups operating in the region have claimed responsibility for the damage to the ship.
Intrigue over the ship’s condition began circulating Tuesday after a report from gCaptain, a maritime news website, showing images of flooding allegedly going on inside the Big Horn.
Navy officials would not confirm or deny the accuracy of the photos but noted that there were no reports of injuries or fuel leaks from the Big Horn.
John Konrad, the CEO of gCaptain, claimed that the oil tanker was the only ship of its kind in the region, with the Navy allegedly “scrambling to find a commercial oil tanker to refuel the Abraham Lincoln carrier group.”
The Navy had reportedly sidelined two replenishment ships and one fleet oiler, along with 14 other ships, last month because of a manpower shortage.
The extent of the Big Horn’s damage remains unclear, but as a Nimitz-class nuclear-powered carrier, the USS Abraham Lincoln can go more than two decades before needing to refuel, according to the Navy.
The aircraft carrier was rushed to the Middle East in August to protect the seas in preparation for a looming direct attack on Israel from Iran and Hezbollah.
The Houthi rebels, another Iran-backed terror group, have also plagued the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden with ongoing attacks on local oil carriers and trade ships in solidarity with Hamas.
The USS Abraham Lincoln is patrolling the nearby Arabian Sea, just east of the Gulf of Aden.
With Post wires
