SOUTH CHINA SEA — The U.S. Navy’s Nimitz-class aircraft carrier USS Abraham Lincoln (CVN-72) has been identified in the South China Sea by open-source intelligence (OSINT) researchers as it continues its return journey to its homeport at Naval Air Station North Island in San Diego, California.
Italian-based OSINT analyst MoloMonitor (@MoloWarMonitor) reported on September 8 that Sentinel-2 satellite imagery showed the carrier at 5.939898, 107.557912, in the southern South China Sea. The researcher said the ship was sailing toward San Diego and estimated its arrival in about 20 days.
The carrier recently completed a five-day port visit to Laem Chabang, Thailand, arriving on September 2 after an extended deployment. It departed Thailand on September 6 and continued operations in the U.S. 7th Fleet area.
I just found the USS Abraham Lincoln aircraft carrier (CVN-72) on Sentinel-2 satellite imagery, 08/09/2026.
— MoloMonitor 🇮🇹 (@MoloWarMonitor) September 8, 2026
It is currently sailing in the South China Sea heading towards its homeport in San Diego, with an expected arrival in about 20 days.
Coordinates: 5.939898, 107.557912 pic.twitter.com/j9OaEjN0h7
Extended Deployment
The Abraham Lincoln left San Diego on November 21, 2025, for an Indo-Pacific deployment but was later redirected to the Middle East. It spent more than 250 days deployed and supported U.S. operations in the region, including missions related to the conflict with Iran.
The deployment lasted about 286 days at sea, according to the U.S. Navy. The carrier was subsequently relieved in the Middle East by the USS George Washington (CVN-73) before beginning its return journey.
Before reaching Thailand, the Abraham Lincoln transited the Strait of Malacca and Singapore Strait. Its September 2 arrival at Laem Chabang marked its first substantial port visit in many months.
The carrier was accompanied by elements of Carrier Strike Group 3 (CSG-3), including the guided-missile destroyer USS Frank E. Petersen Jr. and guided-missile cruiser USS Robert Smalls, which also made nearby port visits in Thailand. The carrier hosts Carrier Air Wing 9 (CVW-9).
Commissioned in 1989, the USS Abraham Lincoln is about 1,092 feet long and powered by two nuclear reactors. The ship normally operates with several thousand sailors and Marines along with its embarked air wing.
The latest Sentinel-2 imagery provides an OSINT-based indication of the carrier’s position. The U.S. Navy does not routinely publish real-time positions of deployed warships, while the coordinates and 20-day arrival estimate were provided by the OSINT researcher.
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