WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW
  • The U.S.S. Abraham Lincoln strike group received the Presidential Unit Citation before its planned return to San Diego.
  • The deployment lasted 321 days and included 40 days in combat for roughly 5,000 carrier sailors and several hundred others.
  • The award citation credited the strike group with 3,963 combat sorties and 64 Iranian vessels sunk.
  • War Secretary Pete Hegseth announced the award during a Wednesday visit aboard the carrier.

The crew of the U.S.S. Abraham Lincoln and the ships in its carrier strike group received the Presidential Unit Citation one day before their scheduled return to the United States. The honor is the military’s highest unit level valor award.

The award capped an exceptionally long deployment for the sailors assigned to the carrier and its accompanying ships. Upon the Lincoln’s planned return to San Diego on Thursday, the carrier’s crew will have spent 321 days away from home.

About 5,000 sailors serve aboard the Lincoln, while several hundred more are assigned to the other ships operating with the strike group. Their time away included 40 days in combat during the deployment connected to the war with Iran.

War Secretary Pete Hegseth visited the carrier Wednesday and announced the Presidential Unit Citation during remarks aboard the ship. His visit came just before the strike group’s expected return following nearly a year away from home.

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According to the award citation, the Lincoln’s crew opened Operation Epic Fury with 60 consecutive hours of strike missions. The sustained opening campaign was one part of the combat record recognized by the military’s top unit valor award.

Multiple Lincoln Sailors Try to Go Overboard as Extended Deployment Takes Brutal Toll
Image Credit: DoW
The aircraft carrier USS Abraham Lincoln sails in support of Operation Epic Fury, March 3, 2026. (U.S. Navy)

The citation also credited the strike group with launching 3,963 combat sorties during the deployment. In addition, the Lincoln and its associated forces sank 64 Iranian vessels, according to the figures Hegseth presented aboard the carrier.

“They had a modern Navy before this conflict started, and then they had to deal with the USS Abraham Lincoln and what you’re capable of doing,” Hegseth said. His remarks put the focus squarely on the sailors and their performance during combat.

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The award citation’s numbers offered a stark accounting of the strike group’s operations. Between the opening 60 hours of strikes, thousands of combat sorties and dozens of Iranian vessels sunk, the Lincoln’s deployment carried a substantial combat record.

Task & Purpose reported this week on another sign of the carrier’s operations against Iranian forces. An F/A-18F strike fighter assigned to the Lincoln returned home last week, arriving ahead of the carrier and the rest of its crew.

USS Abraham Lincoln Sailor Could Face Captain’s Mast After Overboard Rescue
Image Credit: DoW
The aircraft carrier USS Abraham Lincoln in the Arabian Sea on May 29, 2026. Navy photo.

The fighter carried nose art indicating that it had sunk a submarine during the deployment. The aircraft was labeled “Sub Buster,” a blunt calling card that matched the combat results described in the Presidential Unit Citation.

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The Presidential Unit Citation stands as the highest valor award available to a U.S. military unit. It is nearly always presented for intense combat operations or missions conducted under otherwise extraordinarily dangerous circumstances.

The Lincoln is the second carrier strike group to receive the citation for a deployment during the war with Iran. That places its sailors alongside another carrier group and a refueling vessel already recognized for their service in the conflict.

The U.S.S. Gerald R. Ford strike group received the Presidential Unit Citation in May. The USNS Kanawha refueler followed with the same award in June, adding another ship and crew to the list of units honored during the war.

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Image Credit: DoW
Sailor aboard Nimitz-class aircraft carrier USS Abraham Lincoln which has been deployed since November and faced a series of quality of life issues. Navy photo.

Previous recipients illustrate the level of service associated with the citation. Army units that invaded France on D-Day and Marine units that participated in Pacific island hopping campaigns during World War II are among those historically presented with the award.

The citation has also gone to the special operations units that killed Osama Bin Laden in 2011. A string of Coast Guard units received it for their full throttle disaster response across the Gulf of Mexico after Hurricane Katrina.

For the thousands of Lincoln strike group sailors, the award arrived at the end of 321 days away from home and after 40 days in combat. Their scheduled Thursday return to San Diego follows a deployment now marked by the military’s highest unit valor distinction.

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