
USS Harry S Truman , pictured here testing a new unmanned aircraft in 2012, collided with a commercial ship in the Mediterranean Sea. (US Navy)
US aircraft carrier USS Harry S Truman (CVN 75) collided with merchant vessel Besiktas-M at about 2346 h local time on 12 February while operating near Port Said, Egypt, in the Mediterranean Sea, US Navy (USN) officials confirmed in a 13 February statement.
The collision “did not endanger” Truman “as there are no reports of flooding or injuries”, the USN reported, adding, “The propulsion plants are unaffected and in a safe and stable condition.”
The USN said the incident is under investigation and released no further details.
Truman entered the Central Command (CENTCOM) area of responsibility (AOR) on 14 December 2024 and was acknowledged by CENTCOM in a 12 January statement to be operating in the Red Sea in mid-January “as part of ongoing operations in the region”.
As it entered the CENTCOM AOR, the Truman Carrier Strike Group (CSG) included Truman Carrier Air Wing (CVW) 1 with nine embarked aviation squadrons; Destroyer Squadron (DESRON) 28; the Ticonderoga-class guided-missile cruiser, USS Gettysburg (CG 64); and two Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyers, USS Stout (DDG 55) and USS Jason Dunham (DDG 109).
The CSG ships were conducting “various missions, including multiple strikes against Iranian-backed Houthis”, CENTCOM said in a statement.
The Truman CSG is the latest of strike groups to operate in the region.
For more information about earlier deployments, please seeFeature: US Navy weighs cost-effectiveness of Red Sea naval combat operations.
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