The Indian military affairs website Indian Defense Review stated that the departure of the US aircraft carrier USS Harry S. Truman from the Red Sea represents a “humiliation for the US Navy,” with its mission to project power ending in failure.
The report noted that the Truman’s high-risk deployment was plagued by a series of technical failures and onboard accidents—including rare instances of aircraft falling from the deck—an unprecedented embarrassment in US naval history.
These failures reportedly cost Washington billions in losses and raised serious Pentagon concerns over its fleets’ readiness against current threats. The website emphasized that the Truman and its strike group failed to deter “asymmetric threats” from Yemen, with Yemeni forces maintaining active surveillance and control over shipping movements in the Bab el-Mandeb Strait.
The report added that the mission’s strategic ambiguity forced the Pentagon to review its carrier operations comprehensively, ultimately pushing the Trump administration to declare a halt to aggression on Yemen and broker an urgent withdrawal deal for US carriers.
Washington later announced the Truman would undergo multi-year maintenance—a move experts interpret as its de facto retirement from service.
Since late 2023, Yemen’s Armed Forces have dramatically escalated their military operations in response to the Israeli enemy’s war on Gaza and the broader US.-British support for it. As part of their declared solidarity with the Palestinian people, Yemen has launched a sustained campaign targeting Israel-linked ships in the Red Sea, Gulf of Aden, and beyond—expanding its strategy to include aerial and maritime blockades on the Israeli entity.
The US and its allies responded with hundreds of airstrikes across Yemen, aiming to dismantle Yemen’s missile and drone capabilities and protect Israel-linked shipping routes. However, despite the scale of this military campaign, Yemen has not only maintained but expanded its operational reach—targeting US and Israeli military assets, including successful strikes or near-strikes on American aircraft carriers.
The USS Harry S. Truman, a nuclear-powered aircraft carrier, has been one of the most symbolic assets in the US Navy’s regional presence. Any credible threat against it, especially from a country under siege like Yemen, would deal a heavy blow to America’s military prestige.
Yemen’s increasing use of ballistic and hypersonic missiles, along with advanced drones, has shifted the balance of power in regional waters, creating serious concern within US and Israeli defense establishments. Analysts now describe the conflict as one of the most significant maritime confrontations since World War II, with implications far beyond the Red Sea.
The reported retreat of US forces following direct threats to its carriers would represent a major strategic and symbolic victory for Yemen and a major embarrassment for Washington, particularly under the leadership of Donald Trump, whose administration had vowed to maintain dominance in the region.
