Multiple US Navy sailors aboard the USS Abraham Lincoln have reportedly attempted to jump overboard after their deployment in the Middle East, originally due to end in May, was extended indefinitely amid the conflict with Iran. Roughly 5,000 sailors and Marines have now been at sea for almost nine months, with families and crew members describing severe exhaustion and declining morale as the driving factors behind the attempts, some of which were narrowly prevented by fellow sailors.

Relatives, including the wife of one sailor placed on medical hold after trying to jump, told the Military Times and Stars and Stripes that crew members feel trapped, fear career-ending consequences, and in one case messaged home saying they hoped not to wake up the next day. More than 200 family members raised these concerns directly with acting Navy Secretary Hung Cao at a town hall, where Vice Admiral Joseph Cahill acknowledged the toll on sailors and pledged additional mental health staff, though officials did not directly address individual claims. The Navy says it is continuously monitoring sailors' psychological readiness, and the USS Theodore Roosevelt is reportedly being sent to relieve the Lincoln.