Commander of the Eisenhower: Aircraft Carriers No Longer Safe from Ballistic Missiles and Drones

The commander of the U.S. aircraft carrier “Eisenhower”, Christopher Chowdah Hill, revealed that aircraft carriers are no longer safe from ballistic missiles and drones. This statement comes in the wake of historic attacks carried out by the Yemeni army on U.S. carriers in the Red Sea.

Speaking to Ward Carroll on YouTube, Hill acknowledged, “We were aware that the era of safety for aircraft carriers has passed,” though he added that, according to his claims, “the carriers are designed to withstand strikes. ”

Regarding the intensity of Yemeni strikes during the carrier’s deployment in the Red Sea to protect the Zionist entity, Hill explained that they had to take steps to reorganize crew schedules due to ongoing exhaustion and nighttime alerts.

Hill also confirmed that the increasing pressure had affected crew morale as operations in the Red Sea continued.

In a related report, the American military website The War Zone described the recent Red Sea mission of the “Eisenhower” as one of the most dangerous and exhausting operations the U.S. Navy has faced since the Korean War. The report added that the Eisenhower and its accompanying strike group ships encountered several unprecedented events. Notably, an electronic warfare aircraft launched from the Eisenhower had its first-ever air-to-air fight against anti-ship ballistic missiles in the Red Sea, a complex threat the carrier and its escorts had to face regularly.

The Aviationist, another military website, reported a week ago that Eisenhower had come under a barrage of attacks from drones, assault boats, and cruise missiles. The site confirmed that the carrier’s crew suffered extreme fatigue due to the unexpected and repeated Yemeni assaults.

The report also noted that the destroyers accompanying the carrier had depleted their missile stocks due to the intensity of the attacks, forcing them to resupply from nearby stations. Similarly, the German frigate “Hessen” faced a similar fate, depleting its arsenal in attempts to intercept the Yemeni operations.

Yemeni Armed Forces Pursue the Eisenhower

The Yemeni armed forces pursued the U.S. aircraft carrier Eisenhower in the Red Sea, targeting it with ballistic and cruise missiles as well as drones on four occasions, forcing it to flee in humiliation.

On May 31, 2024, the Yemeni Armed Forces announced for the first time that their missile and naval forces had carried out a joint military operation targeting the Eisenhower in the Red Sea with several cruise and ballistic missiles, striking it with precision.

Less than 24 hours later, on June 1, Yemeni naval, missile, and drone forces again targeted the Eisenhower in the northern Red Sea with several missiles and drones.

On June 15, Sayyid Abdul-Malik Badruldeen al-Houthi, in a speech, highlighted the most prominent operation of the preceding week, which was the third attack on the Eisenhower in the northern Red Sea, confirming its pursuit with missile strikes.

In a June 13 address, Sayyid al-Houthi further emphasized that U.S. ships, including the Eisenhower, had fled through the Red Sea until they reached its edge.

Even after Eisenhower reached the far side of the Red Sea, the Yemeni Armed Forces continued their pursuit. On June 22, they launched a fourth attack on the carrier with ballistic and cruise missiles, forcing it to turn and permanently exit the Red Sea.

The final attack on the Eisenhower came shortly after a U.S. announcement that it would be withdrawing the carrier from the Red Sea, signaling Sana’a’s determination to continue its operations and strike back against those supporting the aggression on Gaza.