Those recent viral rust photos/footage of the USS Abraham Lincoln (CVN-72) in Thailand overstated the story.
Yes, the hull looked rough in pictures, but the ship itself was never in question, that's the part the headlines skipped.
Today at Laem Chabang Port in Thailand, local crews under US Navy contract handled the cleanup, rust removal, hull washing, clearing marine growth.
Abe had just wrapped over 280 days of sustained combat operations against Iran that whole stretch. So when you're choosing between keeping jets flying and touching up paint, the paint loses every time, and it should.
Today's ship clean-up proved the ship was always fine, it just needed a wash.
[ Footage by Army Military Force]