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The USS Abraham Lincoln arrived in Thailand visibly covered in rust after spending 286 consecutive days at sea, including combat operations and the Iran blockade. Naval experts said the corrosion was expected after such a long deployment but warned it could worsen without repairs. The carrier’s crew has also reportedly faced supply shortages and declining morale.

The USS Abraham Lincoln arrived at a port in Thailand on Wednesday bearing little resemblance to the aircraft carrier that had departed San Diego in November last year. The nearly 1,100-foot-long warship was visibly covered in rust, with corrosion running across much of its hull.

While the condition caught the attention of people who saw the vessel, naval specialists said the extensive rust was not particularly surprising given the ship’s deployment. The US Navy said the carrier had spent 286 consecutive days at sea, including an extended period involved in combat operations and the blockade of Iran in the Middle East.

Carl Schuster, a former US Navy captain, told CNN, "Rust along the waterline is not unusual on a ship that has spent 60 days or more of operations continuously at sea."

Schuster noted that addressing such corrosion while a vessel is deployed is extremely difficult, especially when it is involved in combat. Repair crews would have to work close to the waterline, remove the accumulated rust, put on two layers of corrosion-resistant primer and then apply two coats of naval grey paint.