Navy Secretary Reports Eight Suicide Attempts on USS Lincoln Strike Group

Acting Navy Secretary Hung Cao told Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand in a Tuesday letter that eight service members across the USS Abraham Lincoln carrier strike group attempted suicide during a deployment that began in November of last year and lasted about 9-10 months. The count spans roughly 6,000 to 7,000 personnel on the carrier, air wing, strike-group staffs, destroyer squadron, escorts and aviation squadrons. No one died by suicide. The group logged more than 250 uninterrupted days at sea this year and supported combat against Iran; a defense official told CBS two attempts came during active fighting. The Lincoln was relieved by USS George Washington late last month, docked in Thailand in early September, reached Guam this week, and is bound for San Diego, with its exact return schedule classified. CNN reported a U.S. military official called eight attempts extraordinarily high while noting the rate was broadly comparable to the active-duty Navy's 2024 rate. Gillibrand said Wednesday that what Trump and Secretary Hegseth dismissed as fake news turned out to be serious and deteriorating conditions. Cao posted a weekend video on X stating the Navy must confront the rising tide of suicide head-on; his wife April also appeared. Cao listed mental-health assets including five chaplains, a prevention counselor, a psychologist, a clinical social worker, three behavioral health technicians and a service dog. Sailors and families had cited food and supply shortages and faulty plumbing; the Pentagon has said personnel had counselors and support and that attempts had not increased.