'unprecedented' Red Sea battle says the US Navy needs to make sure it's ready for a drone fight
Story by jepstein@businessinsider.com (Jake Epstein) • 18h
See the hectic flight deck operations aboard a US Navy aircraft carrier in the Red Sea, where warplane pilots and crews are 'on alerts all the time'
The US Navy has been regularly striking Houthi missiles and drones before they launch.
Planes from USS Dwight D. Eisenhower are always flying and ready to execute these strike missions.
Business Insider recently traveled to the Ike in the Red Sea and saw these activities firsthand.
Flight operations on USS Dwight D. Eisenhower can be chaotic to watch, with sailors, munitions, and aircraft constantly in motion. That flurry of activity though allows the warship to put a tremendous amount of combat power in the air, including heavily armed jets that are ready to strike at a moment's notice.
The Eisenhower, a nuclear-powered Nimitz-class aircraft carrier operating in the Red Sea, is a lead ship in the US Navy's battle against the Iran-backed Houthis, who have spent the last few months firing missiles and drones into the international shipping lanes off the coast of Yemen.
Fighter jets from the Ike have been involved in intercepting these threats in the air and striking the Houthis directly in Yemen. It's a large-scale operation for the crew to keep the aircraft ready for flight and airborne, with aircraft taking off from the carrier all the time.
Business Insider recently embarked on the Ike as it carried out its mission in the Red Sea and observed the flight ops firsthand. Here is what it looked like from the carrier's massive flight deck.
https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/world/carrier-strike-group-commander-who-oversaw-unprecedented-red-sea-battle-says-the-us-navy-needs-to-make-sure-it-s-ready-for-a-drone-fight/ar-BB1phZ3r?ocid=msedgdhp&pc=HCTS&cvid=d6f9969c39ca427a9f0f8e98053f2a84&ei=44
