#uss-gerald-r-ford

#uss-gerald-r-ford

US Southern Command said in a statement that Marines and sailors, working in coordination with the Department of Homeland Security, launched from the aircraft carrier USS Gerald R. Ford and captured the tanker, Olina, "without incident." It appears to be the first time that the US has directly acknowledged the Ford's involvement in the five boarding and seizure operations that began in early December. However, the government has indicated that the carrier was used for at least one of the other missions.

The carrier deployment "will enhance and augment existing capabilities to disrupt narcotics trafficking and degrade and dismantle TCOs [transnational criminal organizations],"

A significant amount of additional firepower is being sent to support President Donald Trump's new drug war. The Gerald R. Ford Carrier Strike Group, led by the Navy's most advanced aircraft carrier, and its embarked carrier air wing will be diverted from the Mediterranean to the US Southern Command area of responsibility, according to a Friday Pentagon statement. The move marks a notable expansion of US military forces in the region.

The U.S. Navy's most advanced aircraft carrier, the USS Gerald R. Ford, departed Virginia on June 24, 2025, likely positioning itself near the Middle East amid rising tensions.