USS Truman woes continue

[Ivanhoe]

https://ijr.com/navy-reportedly-loses-second-fighter-jet-overboard-in-red-sea-in-a-week/
 

Quote

 

The U.S. Navy has lost another F/A-18 Super Hornet in the Red Sea—its second in just over a week—after a failed landing attempt on the USS Harry S. Truman on Tuesday.

Four people familiar with the situation told CNN that the jet ran into problems while trying to land, and both the pilot and weapons officer had to eject. They were picked up by a rescue helicopter and suffered only minor injuries. The fighter jet, however, sank into the sea and has not been recovered.

The Navy is still investigating what went wrong. Two of the sources said the problem had to do with the arresting gear, a system that helps jets stop when landing on a carrier. The jet was lost just hours after Iran-backed Houthi rebels reportedly fired at the Truman, despite President Donald Trump saying earlier in the day that a ceasefire was in place. It’s unclear if the two events are connected.

 

 

[Stuart Galbraith]

'Twinned with U-13.'

[shep854]

How long has Truman been out there? The ship and crew may simply be worn out.

Edited May 7 by shep854

[Ivanhoe]

1 hour ago, shep854 said:

How long has Truman been out there? The ship and crew may simply be worn out.

https://news.usni.org/2025/03/21/secdef-hegseth-extends-uss-harry-s-truman-deployment-in-middle-east-carl-vinson-heading-to-centcom

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Truman left Naval Station Norfolk in Virginia at the end of September and was nearing the end of its planned deployment when Hegseth extended the carrier. After operating in the North Sea for NATO exercises at the beginning of its deployment, Truman sailed to the Eastern Mediterranean and has spent much of its time since then operating in the Red Sea. The carrier briefly stopped in Souda Bay, Crete, last month for emergency repairs following a collision with a merchant ship near Port Said, Egypt.

So 6 months at sea, plus one more to go, not all in the Red Sea AO. So not drastically worse than a typical cruise. OTOH, optempo is pretty high. Its Hornets have been dropping warshots in Yemen for some time.  AFAICT, the Truman doesn't carry F-35Cs in the AO, only the Vinson.

 

[Ol Paint]

1 hour ago, shep854 said:

How long has Truman been out there? The ship and crew may simply be worn out.

She deployed on 23 September 2024, according to the USNI fleet tracker.

Doug

 

[Ivanhoe]

Note that the Truman was headed for the retirement home during Trump's first term, but as happens all too often, OPFOR gets a vote on such things.

Ivanhoe's Iron Rule of Platforms; every time DoD wants to retire a platform, it is badly needed within a decade.

 

[Ol Paint]

Sort of.  The Truman was coming up for the mid-life refueling & complex overhaul (RCOH) when the idea was mooted to retire the ship, instead of investing in the refueling to get another 25 years life from the hull.  That was in 2019.  The contract to start the advanced planning for the overhaul was issued in January 2024.  Carriers are designed to have a 50 year service life.  It looks like she's basically scheduled to enter the overhaul on return from this deployment.

https://hii.com/news/hii-advanced-planning-contract-uss-harry-s-truman-cvn-75-rcoh-2024/

On a somewhat unrelated note, the Truman was laid down on 29 November 1993, launched three years later on 7 September 1996, and delivered 02 July 1998.  A five year build cycle.

Incidentally, during construction on 12 July 1997, three NNS workers died in one of the pump rooms when it filled with methane & H2S due to a sewage leak, according to this site:  http://www.uscarriers.net/cvn75history.htm

Doug

[Ivanhoe]

https://www.cnn.com/2025/05/06/politics/second-us-navy-jet-is-lost-at-sea
 

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CNN  — Another F/A-18 Super Hornet fighter jet from the USS Harry S. Truman aircraft carrier has been lost in the Red Sea, the second jet lost from the carrier in just over a week, five people familiar with the matter told CNN.

It is not entirely clear what happened yet, as the investigation is ongoing, but two of the people said there was some kind of arrestment failure as the jet was trying to land on the carrier and the pilot and weapons systems officer had to eject. They were recovered by a rescue helicopter and are both alive, but they suffered minor injuries, one of the people said.

The jet crashed into the sea and has not been recovered, two of the people familiar with the incident said.

 

Dang.

[TrustMe]

Better get those mini dive subs there fast.