The Navy says it is sending the San Diego-based carrier USS Abraham Lincoln to Alaska to participate in large-scale warfighter training before it deploys to the Indo-Pacific, which is expected to occur later this year.
The 1,092-foot Lincoln is the largest of seven U.S. and Canadian ships that will participate in Northern Edge 2025, an exercise that began Sunday and will last at least eight days and possibly to the end of the month.
The carrier’s specific departure date has not been announced.
The USS O’Kane, a San Diego-based destroyer, also will participate, as will upwards of 6,400 service members and about 100 aircraft, the Navy said Sunday.
The exercise is meant to improve the Navy’s ability to operate in the Indo-Pacific, where there is rising tension over China’s moves to limit the passage of some foreign vessels in the South China Sea.
Last week a Chinese Coast Guard ship and a Chinese destroyer collided in that region while pursuing a Coast Guard vessel belonging to the Philippines, a major U.S. military partner. The Navy, which is trying to keep sea lanes open, sent a destroyer to investigate. The USS Cincinnati, a San Diego-based littoral combat ship, was in the area but did not get involved, the Navy told the San Diego Union-Tribune.