More than a few disgruntled sailors on board. They've been at sea for 268 days already. Their initial deployment was the Mediterranean, then were redeployed to the Caribbean for the Venezuelan affair, then back to the Mediterranean, and again to the Red Sea. After leaving the Caribbean they were promised they'd be home for March, but that was again extended to at least May. Prior to this incident, sabotage has been reported with a fire in the laundry room, and t-shirts found to stuffed down the toilets, disrupting the ship's sewerage system. Looks like they've finally found a way to get to shore. This item was written before the latest setback, reported in the OP: "As of Tuesday, the Ford was on the 266th day of its current deployment, and it will be at least several more weeks before it returns. Vice Chief of Naval Operations, Adm. James Kilby confirmed to lawmakers recently that the Navy did not expect the carrier to return until May... ...The crew was told in the second week of February they would be home by early March, according to the parent of a crew member who spoke to NPR. They did not wish to be identified out of concern for retribution on the sailor. Less than 12 hours later, the crew was told the carrier was being diverted from the Caribbean back to the Mediterranean, and that they probably wouldn't be home until May. Some sailors have questioned whether they want to stay in the Navy, according to the parent." https://www.npr.org/2026/03/17/nx-s1-5746006/uss-ford-iran
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