The move made by the USS Gerald Ford, the world's largest and most expensive aircraft carrier, after its forced stopover in Europe
The American aircraft carrier USS Gerald Ford, which was involved in the military operations by which the US attacked Iran, left Croatia after a five-day stopover, the US Navy announced on Thursday, without specifying the ship's next destination, reports AFP.
The world's largest aircraft carrier, which was facing numerous problems, has “completed repairs and received the necessary supplies to continue its operations” and “remains ready to fulfill its mission in service of national objectives in any area of operations,” the US Navy said in a press release.
The USS Gerald Ford, operating in the eastern Mediterranean and Red Sea to participate in military operations against Iran, was affected by a fire in the ship's “main laundry” on March 12.
Two sailors were injured then, and the fire affected hundreds of beds.
The US Navy said on Thursday that “an investigation is ongoing”, and previously insisted that the fire was unrelated to US attacks on Iran.
The United States and Israel launched a broad air campaign against Iran on February 28, following a major US military build-up in the Middle East that included the USS Gerald Ford – already at sea for at least ten months – and another US Navy aircraft carrier, the Abraham Lincoln.
The two aircraft carriers played a key role in operations in Iran, and the withdrawal of the aircraft carrier Gerald Ford in mid-March left a void among US forces engaged against Iran. The dozens of fighter jets the USS Gerald Ford carries have contributed to more than two weeks of bombing of Iran.
What the US military command did not say after the fire in the ship's laundry that broke out in March was that the fire was brought under control only after more than 30 hours and that the incident left about 600 crew members without beds, out of a total of about 4,500 on board, who have since been forced to sleep on the floor or on tables, the American publication The New York Times later revealed.
Although it is the world's most expensive aircraft carrier, US sailors also complained earlier in February of broken toilets, making routine maintenance difficult in the context of long deployments at sea.
The USS Gerald R. Ford docked March 28 in Croatia's Adriatic port of Split for repairs and maintenance.
The aircraft carrier, with more than 5,000 sailors, has more than 75 military aircraft on board, including fighter jets such as the F-18 Super Hornet, and boasts a sophisticated radar system for air traffic control and navigation.
