A U.S. Marine Corps UH-1Y Venom and an AH-1Z Viper, both assigned to Marine Medium Tiltrotor Squadron (VMM) 163 (Reinforced), 11th Marine Expeditionary Unit, are staged on the flight deck aboard Wasp-class amphibious assault ship USS Boxer (LHD 4) in the Indian Ocean, June 24
(U.S. Marine Corps photo by Lance Cpl. Nicole Stuart)
The United States and Iran resumed attacks on Thursday, threatening to end any hope that an agreement can be reached to end the war that began on February 28. The United States military claimed to have struck around 90 targets across the Islamic Republic, with Tehran retaliating by striking U.S. allies across the region.
The resumption of fighting comes as the United States Central Command confirmed that the USS Tripoli Amphibious Ready Group, including the flagship America-class amphibious assault ship USS Tripoli (LHA-7) and the Whidbey Island-class dock landing ship USS Rushmore (LSD-47), exited the Arabian Sea and is now operating in the Indian Ocean. Another vessel from the ready group, the San Antonio-class amphibious transport dock USS New Orleans (LPD-18), is reportedly still in the Arabian Sea as of Wednesday, but is expected to enter the U.S. Pacific Command’s area of responsibility as well.
The forward-deployed USS Tripoli Amphibious Ready Group, which is homeported at Sasebo, Japan, as part of the U.S. 7th Fleet, was dispatched to the Middle East in March, with approximately 3,500 sailors and Marines from the 31st Marine Expeditionary Unit.
Another ARG Has Arrived In The Middle East
The USS Boxer Amphibious Ready Group and the embarked 11th Marine Expeditionary Unit arrived in the Middle East at the end of June, CENTCOM also announced. Led by the Wasp-class amphibious assault ship USS Boxer (LHD-4), the ARG was previously operating in the South China Sea after beginning its deployment from Naval Base San Diego, Calif., in March.
The Boxer Amphibious Ready Group includes LHD-4, the Whidbey Island-class dock landing ship USS Comstock (LSD-45), the San Antonio-class amphibious transport dock USS Portland (LPD-27), and the 11th Marine Expeditionary Unit.
Although not an aircraft carrier, the USS Boxer has a standard complement of around six F-35B Lightning II fighters, the short takeoff and vertical landing variant of the fifth-generation stealth Joint Strike Fighter. It also carries a standard complement of 12 MV-22B Osprey tiltrotor aircraft to rapidly deploy the MEU and land them in hostile territory.
At 844 feet long with a beam of 106 feet, the Wasp-class LHD is essentially a floating military base. It is equipped with six cargo elevators to move materiel and supplies from the cargo holds, as well as two aircraft elevators. The conventionally-powered warship also carries three Landing Craft Air Cushion, a dozen Landing Craft Mechanized, or upwards of forty Amphibious Assault Vehicles. The flight deck features nine helicopter landing spots.
Two Nuclear-Powered Supercarriers Remain Deployed To The Middle East
The United States has been trying to maintain a presence in multiple regions simultaneously, and that has been difficult as it has rotated its nuclear-powered carriers to the Middle East.
Currently, the Nimitz-class supercarriers USS Abraham Lincoln (CVN-72) and USS George H.W. Bush (CVN-77) are operating in the region. San Diego-based CVN-72 began its current deployment last November and was dispatched to the region in January. CVN-77 departed Naval Station Norfolk, Va., in March, traveling around Africa to reach the region, likely to avoid the Bab el-Mandeb Strait, a significant global chokepoint that connects the Red Sea with the Gulf of Aden.
The USS Gerald R. Ford (CVN-78), lead vessel of the U.S. Navy’s newest class of nuclear-powered aircraft carriers, was operating in the region until May. The vessel returned to Naval Station Norfolk after spending 326 days deployed, the longest ever time at sea for any nuclear-powered flattop and the longest aircraft carrier deployment since the Vietnam War. During the 11-month deployment, the USS Gerald R. Ford operated in the U.S. 2nd, 4th, 5th and 6th Fleets area of operations, spanning the Mediterranean, the Caribbean and the Red Sea.
It is unclear how long CVN-72 could remain in the Middle East, but CENTCOM will likely need to maintain a presence of at least two carriers until a final deal is worked out with Tehran.
As previously reported, the U.S. Navy has limited options for what other carriers could be dispatched to the region. It is possible that USS George Washington (CVN-73), the U.S. Navy’s only forward-deployed supercarrier, could be sent to the Middle East, but it would take at least week for it to reach the region. The sixth Nimitz-class flattop began its 20026 annual patrol on May 23, departing from the U.S. Navy base in Yokosuka, Japan.
Another San Diego-based flattop, the USS Theodore Roosevelt (CVN-71), also began its deployment on June 15, 2026, but that warship is leading the 2026 Rim of the Pacific (RIMPAC), the 30th iteration of what is now the world’s largest international maritime warfare exercise.
If the aerial campaign against the Islamic Republic intensifies, the U.S. Navy may have to make do with just its two carriers and one amphibious assault ship.
The U.S. Air Force also withdrew its deployed Boeing B-52 Stratofortress long-range strategic bombers from Royal Air Force Fairford in the UK, but several Rockwell B-1B Lancer bombers do remain at the U.S. Air Force base. Likewise, the U.S. could conduct strikes with the Northrop B-2 Spirit bombers flying from Whiteman Air Force Base, Missouri, as the aircraft did in June 2025 during Operation Midnight Hammer, which targeted Iran’s primary nuclear facilities.