USS Ford Aircraft Carrier Heads To Israel, Can Attack Iran From Eastern Mediterranean

Illustrative image. (U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 3rd Class Maxwell Orlosky)

The USS Gerald R. Ford, the United States’ largest aircraft carrier, left port near the Greek island of Crete on February 26 bound for shores near the port city of Haifa in northern Israel, Reuters reported.

The news agency said that the carrier expected to arrive at its destination within a day. Footage posted to social networks shows the carrier leaving Crete’s Souda Bay, where it arrived this week for a supply stop at the U.S. Naval Support Activity base there.

The deployment of the Ford to the Middle East marked the height of the U.S. military buildup in the region, which began last month when President Donald Trump first threatened Iran with military action over a violent wave of protests.

Aboard the Ford is the Carrier Air Wing Eight (CVW-8) with more than 75 warplanes, including F/A-18E/F Super Hornet fighter jets, EA-18G Growler electronic attack jets and a number of E-2D Hawkeye tactical airborne early warning (AEW) aircraft.

The carrier’s strike group, which includes Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyers, is expected to join it off the shores of Israel. Destroyers of this class are typically armed with Tomahawk land-attack cruise missiles, and equipped with the Aegis Combat System, which has anti-missile capabilities.

The Ford was widely expected to join the other aircraft carrier in the Middle East, the USS Abraham Lincoln, in the Arabian Sea.

The deployment in the Eastern Mediterranean Sea off Israel’s shores makes sense, however. With air-to-air refueling, CVW-8 warplanes will be able to attack targets in Iran, which is located under 1,000 kilometers away. Coordinating with the Israeli Air Force and the U.S. military assets already deployed there, including at least 11 F-22 Raptor stealth fighter jets, will be also easier.

In addition, the strike group of the Ford will enhance the air defenses of Israel with the Aegis Combat System, all while keeping pressure on possible threats, like Hezbollah in Lebanon.

While the Ford and its strike group will be able to attack targets in western, southern, and possibly central Iran, the Lincoln will likely focus on the western region of the Islamic Republic. Aboard the latter is the Carrier Air Wing Nine (CVW-9), which very much includes similar warplanes to the CVW-8, in addition to at least 12 F-35C Lightning II stealth fighter jets.

Israel faced difficulty when it came to western Iran, and even refrained from claiming aerial superiority over the region during the 12-day war last June.

Axios reported recently that the U.S. and Israel are planning a weeks-long joint attack on the Islamic Republic, and recent American movements hints in this direction.

As the Ford is heading to Israel, the third round of indirect nuclear talks between the U.S. and Iran kicked off in Geneva. While both sides reported some progress in previous rounds, the cost of the American military buildup in the Middle East, including the deployment of two carrier strike groups, may be a sign that the Trump administration has already made the decision to go to war with the Islamic Republic.

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