USS Lincoln returns to San Diego after spending more than 300 days at sea

SAN DIEGO (NBC, KYMA) - In San Diego Thursday, a homecoming more than ten months in the making as the USS Abraham Lincoln returns home after an extended deployment which included combat operations in the Middle East.

Families are anxiously waiting to see their loved ones.

The USS Lincoln left San Diego last November. Its strike group took part in combat operations against Iran as part of Operation Epic Fury and enforced a naval blockade.

The U.S. Navy said the carrier's air wing logged more than 13,000 flights.

The ship steamed more than 85,000 nautical miles, served four million meals to the thousands of sailors and Marines on board, and conducted 72 replenishments at sea, but as time stretched on, families raised alarms about food and supply shortages and their loved one's mental health.

In a letter to Congress, the Navy reported eight suicide attempts across the carrier strike group, with the Navy saying mental health professionals were on board.

It also said food supplies were adequate although limited resupplies meant cutting back at times on menu choices and ship maintenance.

The USS George Washington relieved the Lincoln over the summer.

Defense secretary Pete Hegseth visited the carrier Tuesday and presented them with the presidential unit citation.

After months away, the crew wasn't just heading home with a new honor, they were finally heading home to their families.

"If you would when you get home tomorrow just pass my gratitude from the president and myself let them know that their long wait was in service of a righteous and historic mission," Secretary Hegseth remarked.

The homecoming does not end the questions about this deployment.

Rep. Sara Jacobs (D-Calif.) visited the ship September 27, pushing for an independent investigation and a congressional hearing here in San Diego to hear directly from service members.