Published On 5/5/2026
A satellite image revealed that the US aircraft carrier USS Gerald R. Ford was spotted in the central Mediterranean. The carrier appeared as it was moving westward, accompanied by two military vessels, on a path that matches American reports indicating its return to the United States after the end of its long deployment in the Middle East.
The image taken by the European satellite “Sentinel-2” on May 3, and analyzed by the open source unit on the island, showed the nuclear carrier with a visible trace of movement behind it on the surface of the sea, which confirms its presence in sailing mode at the time of documentation.
According to visual analysis, the carrier was spotted at a distance of 145 kilometers northeast of the island of Malta, and two smaller military pieces appeared next to it, and it is likely, based on their shape, size, and operational context, that they are destroyers of the “Arleigh Burke” class.
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This monitoring comes after the carrier left the port of Split in Croatia on April 2, following a five-day visit. The US Navy then announced that this period would be allocated for operational cessation and maintenance and supply work, without revealing the carrier’s next destination.
Earlier, the Associated Press quoted American officials as saying that the aircraft carrier will leave the Middle East within days, returning to its original port in Virginia in mid-May, after a deployment of more than 300 days.
According to the agency, the carrier’s deployment included carrying out operations in the Mediterranean, the Caribbean, and the Middle East, before participating in the first days of the war against Iran, to emerge later in the Red Sea after crossing the Suez Canal at the beginning of last March.
During its long deployment, the carrier also encountered a fire accident in one of its internal facilities, which required repairs and raised many questions about the amount of pressure on the crew and the extent of the ship’s readiness.
