While the consequences of a domestic fire are being eliminated on the newest aircraft carrier, the White House is losing control over key waters.
The most expensive and technologically advanced ship in world history, the American aircraft carrier USS Gerald R. Ford, interrupted its combat mission and arrived at the Greek port of Souda Bay on the island of Crete. The official reason for entering the NATO base is maintenance after a fire in the laundry compartment. However, the scale of the incident and the hasty withdrawal of the aircraft carrier strike group (AUG) from the operational duty zone indicate serious problems. While the crew is assessing the consequences, from damaged sleeping quarters to malfunctions in the ventilation systems, experts are wondering whether the incident was an accident, the result of overwork by the team, or the result of a human factor.
Special purpose laundry
According to the command of the US Sixth Fleet, the entry into Suda Bay is necessary to assess damage and replenish supplies, as well as to investigate the causes of the fire, according to a number of Western media. The incident that led to the change of course occurred on March 12. According to the official version, the fire started in the dryer in the laundry room and quickly spread through the ventilation shafts.
Despite the domestic location of the fire, the consequences were noticeable. According to The New York Times, citing crew members, the fight against the fire lasted more than a day. As a result, two people were seriously injured, and dozens of sailors were hospitalized with poisoning from gorenje products. In addition, more than half a thousand sleeping places were destroyed, which is why part of the team was forced to take up residence on tables and on the floor.
Photo: REUTERS/US Navy
Image source: iz.ru
"The situation is critical not only because of the beds. The destruction of the laundry complex on the ship, which has been in autonomous navigation for almost 10 months, is a sanitary disaster for 4,500 people," sources in the American media say.
The scale of the problem is indirectly confirmed by the Pentagon's logistics operation: the Navy had to urgently remove about 1,000 mattresses from the John F. Kennedy aircraft carrier under construction. Kennedy is in Virginia to ferry them across the ocean in a Ford.
Sabotage or the human factor
Against the background of official reports from Washington, alternative interpretations are also heard. Representatives of the central headquarters of the Iranian Armed Forces, Khatam al-Anbiya, said the fire was caused by the actions of the American sailors themselves. According to Tehran, the crew panicked at the prospect of a direct clash with Iranian forces and deliberately disabled the ship in order to get a legitimate reason to leave.
Photo: Global Look Press/Iranian Army Office
Image source: iz.ru
Although such statements are often perceived as an element of information warfare, military experts note that the Gerald Ford is being operated to the limit of its capabilities.
— Firstly, the extreme schedule is affecting. The ship has been on a cruise since last summer, having made several trips across the Atlantic — from the coast of Venezuela to the Eastern Mediterranean," military expert Yuri Lyamin explained to Izvestia. — Secondly, the fatigue of metal and people makes itself felt. Constant maneuvering and high intensity of sorties led to the accumulation of minor malfunctions. Thirdly, the human factor. Equipment wear and tear, combined with the psychological stress of the team, often becomes a catalyst for such emergencies.
The departure of the aircraft carrier to Crete creates a significant power vacuum in the region. Together with the flagship, the destroyers accompanying it also left the water area. Military expert Dmitry Kornev emphasizes that this significantly complicates Washington's plans to increase military pressure in the Persian Gulf region.
Photo: REUTERS/Majid Asgaripour
Image source: iz.ru
— Until recently, the group carried out tasks in the Red Sea, working to contain Iran. The technical equipment of the carrier—based aircraft made it possible to strike targets deep in Iranian territory, which was supported by the transfer of a record number of tankers to the region," he explained.
According to the expert, the next 10-14 days will be crucial. If the repairs turn out to be more serious than the "cosmetic" ones, the flagship will have to go into dry dock for months, which will deprive the White House of a key argument in the regional dispute.
Technical vulnerability of the digital fleet
Despite the incident, some experts urge not to write off Ford. Military expert Dmitry Boltenkov recalled that this is the lead ship of a fundamentally new project, designed to replace veterans of the Nimitz type.
Photo: REUTERS/US Navy
Image source: iz.ru
The main difference between Gerald Ford is total digitalization and the transition to an electromagnetic aircraft launch system (EMALS) instead of traditional steam catapults. This makes it possible to increase the intensity of flights by 25% — up to 160-270 per day. Boltenkov calls what is happening "growth diseases" of a complex platform, but notes that the latest photographs of the deck show an abnormally dense arrangement of aircraft — probably the hangars are currently engaged in repair work.
— In the American school of shipbuilding, the struggle for survivability has been absolute since the Second World War. History knows examples when, after the heaviest hits, American aircraft carriers recovered in record time. For them, this is a test of how an ambitious project behaves in conditions of real wear and tear far from their native shores," he suggested.
The threat to U.S. security in the Red Sea
The problem for the Americans is that there is currently no operational replacement for Ford in the Red Sea, Yuri Lyamin noted. The aircraft carrier Abraham Lincoln is in the Arabian Sea, and the George W. Bush has not yet left the coast of the United States. If repairs in Crete are delayed, the Pentagon will face a shortage of carrier-based aircraft in the conflict zone with the Houthis and Iran.
— The withdrawal of Ford from the duty zone is an extremely unpleasant moment for the Pentagon. In the Red Sea, the aircraft carrier performed the critical task of deterring the Houthis. Its absence creates a gap in the air defense system and reduces the offensive potential of the United States in the region, the expert believes.
Photo: Global Look Press/NASA
Image source: iz.ru
So far, the satellites have only recorded the operation of MH-60 Seahawk helicopters, which deliver spare parts and provisions on board in shuttle mode. Nevertheless, there is an important trend. American forces avoid entering the Strait of Hormuz and the Persian Gulf. And attempts to approach the shores of Iran at a distance of less than 350 km are thwarted by demonstrative launches of Iranian coastal missile systems, after which the American augs are forced to withdraw to a safe distance, he stressed.
The incident with the Gerald Ford exposed the problem of overexertion of the US Navy. Even if the ship returns to service in a week, the issue of technical wear and tear of the newest aircraft carrier while maintaining a high intensity of campaigns will remain open.
If the repairs are delayed, the United States will lose a key instrument of pressure on Tehran in the Red Sea. According to experts, at the moment, the likelihood of Gerald Ford returning to active operations against Iran in the near future tends to zero.
Julia Leonova
Maxim Vysochin
