00:01Loaded with munitions, these fighter jets on USS George Washington are on the front lines of the U.S. war
00:08against Iran.
00:09It is 1.30 in the morning out here in the Arabian Sea, and we are watching a process called
00:14launch and recovery.
00:18And what happens is they launch several aircraft off the deck of the carrier, and then when that process is
00:23done, they bring several in from previous missions.
00:27It's incredibly hot. It's incredibly loud. It's orchestrated, but it's chaos.
00:33For now, these fighters are focused on enforcing the blockade of Iranian ports and protecting ships in the Strait of
00:40Hormuz.
00:41But when the sun comes up, there's a major replenishment and signs that the carrier is preparing for a much
00:47larger bombing campaign.
00:49I just see boxes and boxes and boxes of munitions.
00:53What does this magazine room look like when there is a ramp up?
00:58This is it right here.
00:59The Wall Street Journal was given rare access to the aircraft carrier and a guided missile destroyer operating in the
01:06Middle East, as President Trump considers new strikes on Iran.
01:17We are on the USS George Washington Aircraft Carrier in the Arabian Sea, and we are here at a super
01:23interesting time.
01:24So follow us. We go meet some sailors, see how people are preparing on the ship.
01:28We've been asked not to reveal the warship's exact location in the region, but officials said it's in position for
01:35any scenario.
01:37Some sailors here call it the vampire carrier since it conducts flight operations at night, while a second carrier in
01:43the region operates during the day.
01:46Down in the ship, the hallways are often lit red to keep its crew adjusted to the overnight shift.
01:52Helmets on, goggles on, blowcoats on, no loose items out there.
02:01The carrier and its accompanying destroyers, known as a carrier strike group, are based in Japan.
02:06They deployed to the Middle East in August to replace USS Abraham Lincoln, which made headlines for going nearly 300
02:13days without a port call, sparking concerns about living conditions and mental health.
02:19Many of the sailors we spoke to on and off camera said they never expected to be on the front
02:24lines of the war against Iran.
02:26You have to like center yourself to just be like, OK, like, we're fine. Like, we're going to get home.
02:36It just sucks being away and like kind of disconnected from everything.
02:41It's not a cruise. It's not luxury. We were free to work.
02:49Work's not easy.
02:52Just being here isn't easy, but it's doable.
02:56Some days are really fine. Some days are pretty hard, but it's it's a grind.
03:02It's it's an experience that a lot of people don't get to have.
03:07Just days after the strike group arrived, it conducted attacks on Iranian sites near the Strait of Hormuz.
03:13It also attacked Iranian oil tankers after Iran targeted the carrier and other Navy ships with ballistic missiles.
03:21This has been a very busy and complex and even historic deployment.
03:26But honestly, this is exactly what our team trains for.
03:30We are always paying attention, focused on our surroundings and ready to react flexibly or proactively.
03:40Now there are signs that the warships could launch much larger strikes against Iran.
03:44This is what we call a RAS, right? We're punishment at sea.
03:48We're doing a couple of things at one time. We're doing fuel, we're doing supplies and we're doing ammo.
03:52So this is some of the ammo we're taking on.
03:54It's a lot. It's a lot. I've been watching you do it all day.
03:57All day.
03:58We followed Commander Brian Garcia, known as the gun boss, as the ship received a large shipment of standoff missiles
04:04and bunker buster bombs.
04:06We have some things that are coming over that are about 4,800 pounds.
04:10So are these being brought onto the ship by the helicopter?
04:13Yes, ma'am. So these will get stacked up and when they're ready, we'll put them on the wheels and
04:19be ready to go.
04:20Many of the munitions being dropped off are designed to penetrate ground targets, hinting at plans for a broader bombing
04:26campaign.
04:27Right now what you're seeing is just various weapons and missiles and bombs.
04:31This is a bunker buster on skids. We call this rolling stop.
04:35Rolling stop just means it's easy to get. When the mission set calls, we're able to come down and grab
04:40it and shoot it to the roof using these elevators all the way up like that.
04:43So you put the munitions out on the elevator and it shoots to the top?
04:46Yes, ma'am.
04:47What is this one?
04:48So this one is the bunker buster. So it's a GBU-31 Victor 4. It's made for hard penetrated targets.
04:54We're getting more of these weapons right here and a couple of other items that they feel we're going to
04:59need for whatever the mission set sets for here in the future.
05:03I wish I had a crystal ball to tell me what was going to happen. I'm sure you do too.
05:07Absent that, we have reporting and our reporting indicates that commanders across the Joint Force are preparing for an escalation.
05:13It doesn't mean it's going to happen, but the preparation is in place.
05:16What does this magazine room look like when there is a ramp up?
05:21This is it right here. This is the preparation that we're ready for. We don't need to ramp up because
05:25we're already prepared.
05:28The preparation comes after weeks of mounting Iranian attacks on commercial ships in the Strait of Hormuz.
05:34The war, now in its eighth month, is unpopular in America and has pushed President Trump's approval rating lower.
05:42Trump has previously said that he won't attack Iran before the November midterm elections and he has touted the movement
05:48of oil through the Strait of Hormuz despite Iran's attacks.
05:52Millions of barrels of oil has been delivered just over the last couple of days.
05:56Despite concerns about a shortage of munitions and a strain on both military personnel and equipment, the Pentagon has extended
06:03deployments and ordered more equipment to be sent to the Middle East.
06:07In a statement, the Pentagon told us the department's job is to develop and present military options to the president.
06:13We want to make sure that Iran never gets a nuclear weapon. We're prepared to contribute any way necessary.
06:19We've done historic devastation to their military and military capabilities. But if they're not willing to give it up and
06:26the president asks us to go even further, we're prepared.
06:29Aircraft carriers have been critical to the war effort because they can launch operations at any time.
06:35And they are constantly maneuvering, making them tougher for Iran to target than America's military bases on land.
06:44To ensure the aircraft can fly, a crew of 5,000 men and women work around the clock to keep
06:49the carrier going.
06:50You have this whole city, right? 3,000 out of 5,000 are a ship's company that run the ship.
06:58People that work in combat and operate the radar systems.
07:01People who leave aircraft on the flight deck.
07:04Then 2,000 are the actual pilots and then the maintainers, some that you see fixing this helicopter here.
07:11That's part of the air wing that represents 2,000.
07:14It really is like running a city.
07:16There's a lot going on down there.
07:18In the hangar bay, teams carefully move aircraft up to and down from the flight deck on giant elevators.
07:25And in the flight deck control room, officers oversee the movement of assets on what they call a Ouija board.
07:31To keep both the aircraft and the sailors safe.
07:34This is a scale model of what is on the flight deck.
07:37So that way the handler can see eyes out here.
07:40Our manual, which we go by, is written in blood.
07:45So that's why we have certain restrictions that we can and can't do with stuff.
07:49So once you see the aircraft right there, it's done.
07:52The carrier also has its own jet shop, where mechanics troubleshoot broken engines and bring them roaring back to life.
08:01When people watch Top Gun and they're like, you know, not even thinking about the people who are behind the
08:05scenes.
08:06Like, there's a reason why that aircraft is able to fly.
08:08We're silent but deadly in AIMD for sure.
08:12More than 1,000 sailors are also supporting USS George Washington by serving on guided missile destroyers nearby.
08:20USS Shoup is one of many destroyers out here in the Arabian Sea.
08:24These destroyers are on the front lines of the U.S. blockade.
08:27They also play a key role in protecting the carrier.
08:30Known as a small boy, the destroyer is loaded with defensive weapons.
08:34These are vertical launch systems.
08:36They can hold tomahawks, which are offensive, but they also hold SM-2s, SM-3s, SM-6s.
08:41Those are counter-missile, counter-drone capabilities.
08:44And then up here is what they call the CWIS, the close-in weapon system.
08:48And that is the last layer of defense.
08:50So if something gets through all those other layers, they're firing this thing to take down the threat.
08:55Captain William Buford coordinates air and missile defense for the entire strike group.
09:01How much time do you guys have from detection of a threat to potential engagement?
09:05I can't speak to specifics, but, you know, enough.
09:08Enough. You're comfortable with it.
09:10I wouldn't say comfortable, as, you know, there's someone out there trying to do you harm.
09:16I don't think it's good to be comfortable, but I feel confident in the ship's ability to respond to threats.
09:22Admiral Jeffrey Heems is in charge of the entire strike group, from the carrier to the destroyers protecting it.
09:27He said he's not aware of the strike group having any of the problems that plagued the Lincoln, like suicide
09:32attempts or supply issues.
09:34But he wants sailors to know they can reach out for help if they need it.
09:38Some of the carriers involved in this conflict have set modern-day records that they never wanted to set.
09:43The Ford for its length of deployment and the Lincoln for the number of days it went without a port
09:47call.
09:48What do you tell your sailors and how do you keep morale up when there isn't necessarily an end date
09:52in sight?
09:53I wasn't there, but those are achievements. They're significant challenges that the ships have overcome in that respect.
10:01And so we look at them, hey, they did a great job. We're proud of them.
10:05We think our Navy should be proud of them and our country as well.
10:08And it's our time to take the watch, which we've done.
10:10In terms of time, I tell the crew, I'll tell you when I know.
10:13For now, let's focus on the day-to-day. Let's make sure we're fully trained for whatever's in front of
10:17us and that we're just getting after it every day.
10:24We'll see you next time.
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