The Nimitz aircraft carrier group was rerouted from the Indo-Pacific to the Middle East, joining the USS Carl Vinson. The move comes amid airstrikes between Israel and Iran.
Also, the Defense Department is moving aircraft to the European and Central Command theaters if needed to support U.S. bases in the region, the Navy Times reported.
And other ships, including Navy destroyers, are also headed to the region, a U.S. official told NBC News. Those ships, which are now based in U.S. European Command, include ballistic missile defense, or BMD, capabilities. Some destroyers are now stationed off Israel’s coast in the Mediterranean.
“Over the weekend, I directed the deployment of additional capabilities to the United States Central Command Area of Responsibility, U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth posted Monday on X. “Protecting U.S. forces is our top priority and these deployments are intended to enhance our defensive posture in the region.”
The Nimitz was scheduled to go to the Middle East but officials canceled a stop in Vietnam, NBC News reported. The George Washington carrier group is operating in the Philippine Sea.
The Nimitz strike group could reach the Middle East later this week, an official told Politico. The exact location hasn’t been disclosed.
The carrier was sailing in the South China Sea and has made its way through the Strait of Malacca, which connects the Andaman Sea and the South China Sea and is about 1,200 miles from Iran.
The Vinson has sailed in the Arabian Sea, and it has partnered with the USS Harry S. Truman carrier strike group to hit Houthi targets in Yemen, as well. Its home port is San Diego.
President Donald Trump hasn’t said whether the United States will join Israel against Iran.
“We’re not involved in it,” Trump said during an interview with ABC News. “It’s possible we could get involved. But we are not at this moment involved.”
Israel’s aircraft have mainly been targeting nuclear facilities, including the Fordow Fuel Enrichment Plant built into a mountain and buried deep underground.
The Nimitz carrier group has about 5,000 sailors and Marines, including aircraft crews. Assigned destroyers are Wilbur, Gridle, Meyer and Higbee
The aircraft carrier was commissioned in 1975 and the home port is in Bremerton, Wash.
All but three of the 11 active U.S. aircraft carriers are in homeports now.
The Vinson and Nimitz are among the 10 in an older carrier class. The USS Gerald R. Ford carrier is only one commissioned in the new class.
U.S. moving refueling aircraft to Europe
The U.S. military has moved a large number of refueling aircraft to Europe to provide options to President Donald Trump as Middle East tensions erupt into conflict between Iran and Israel, two U.S. officials told Reuters.
irNav systems, a flight tracking website, said more than 31 U.S. Air Force refueling aircraft – primarily KC-135s and KC-46s – left the United States on Sunday, heading east.
The U.S. officials declined to comment on the number of aircraft. The Pentagon referred Reuters to the White House, which did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
“The sudden eastward deployment of over two dozen U.S. Air Force tankers is not business as usual. It’s a clear signal of strategic readiness,” said Eric Schouten at Dyami Security Intelligence.
“Whether it’s about supporting Israel, preparing for long-range operations, logistics is key, this move shows the U.S. is positioning itself for rapid escalation if tensions with Iran spill over.”
AirNav systems said the U.S. military flights had landed in Europe, including at Ramstein air base in Germany and airports in the United Kingdom, Estonia, and Greece.
A U.S. official, speaking on condition of anonymity, declined to comment on the tanker movement but stressed that U.S. military activities in the region were defensive in nature.
Another source familiar with the issue said the United States has told regional countries that it is making defensive preparations and would switch to offensive operations if Iran strikes any U.S. facilities.
The United States already has a sizeable force in the Middle East, with nearly 40,000 troops in the region, including air defense systems, fighter aircraft and warships that can help bring down missiles.
Last month, the Pentagon replaced B-2 bombers with another type of bomber at a base in the Indo-Pacific that is seen as being an ideal location to operate in the Middle East. The B-52 bombers can carry large bunker-busting munitions, which experts say can be used against Iran’s nuclear facilities.
