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🇵🇾 Paraguay /Conflict & Security

USS Abraham Lincoln crew resumes journey home after five-day break in Thailand

From ABC Color · () Spanish

Translated from Spanish and summarized by DistantNews. Read the original for the full story.

At a glance

Newswire From a news agency Outcome reported
  • About 5,000 U.S. Marines and sailors aboard the USS Abraham Lincoln left Thailand after spending five days in Pattaya during their return from a more than 200-day Middle East deployment.
  • The stop brought an estimated economic boost of up to 100 million baht, or more than $3 million, to the Thai resort city, according to its mayor.
  • The carrier’s crew conducted patrol, blockade and air operations during the war involving Iran, while U.S. officials acknowledged a small number of mental health cases but no deaths during the deployment.

After more than 200 days deployed in the Middle East, about 5,000 U.S. Marines and sailors aboard the USS Abraham Lincoln have resumed their journey home from Thailand.

The nuclear-powered aircraft carrier arrived at Laem Chabang port in eastern Thailand on Wednesday. Its crew then spent five days in Pattaya, a resort city known for its nightlife, before departing on Sunday.

Pattaya Mayor Poramet Ngampichet said the rest-and-recreation stop could bring the city up to 100 million baht, more than $3 million. Local media showed Marines staying in hotels, visiting tourist attractions, shopping in malls and local stores, and going to bars and parties.

We want to thank the people of Thailand for their incredible hospitality.

· Dan KeelerThe aircraft carrier commander thanked Thailand as the ship left Pattaya.

“We want to thank the people of Thailand for their incredible hospitality,” carrier commander Dan Keeler said in a statement. The ship is expected to reach the United States in mid-September.

The Abraham Lincoln left San Diego in November and deployed to the Persian Gulf in late January amid rising tensions between Washington and Tehran. During the war that began on February 28 and continued six months later, the crew carried out patrol, blockade and air operations, according to the Pentagon.

The length of the deployment had prompted concerns about conditions aboard the ship and the troops’ well-being. Navy Secretary Hung Cao said there had been “a small number of cases of mental health” problems, while stressing that no one died during the deployment. Pattaya, once a quiet fishing village, grew rapidly in the 1960s after U.S. troops arrived at nearby U-Tapao air base and naval bases during the Vietnam War. The city later became a major rest destination for American forces and has more recently sought to move beyond its reputation as a sex-tourism destination.

a small number of cases of mental health

· Hung CaoThe U.S. Navy secretary described mental health problems recorded during the long deployment.
About this summary

Originally published by ABC Color in Spanish. Translated, summarized, and contextualized automatically by DistantNews, with a note on how the source frames the story. Not individually reviewed before publishing. How this works.

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