MOSCOW, March 15. /TASS/. Expensive US aircraft carriers, seen as a key pillar of American military power, have proven vulnerable in the Middle East conflict, with Iran’s precision weapons systems effectively paralyzing two US Navy carrier strike groups, Alexander Stepanov, expert with the Institute of Law and National Security at the Russian Presidential Academy of National Economy and Public Administration, told TASS.
"First, the USS Abraham Lincoln aircraft carrier moved farther away from the Iranian coast to a safer distance, and then, according to the Iranian side, returned to its home base with potential damage. The most expensive and technologically advanced aircraft carrier in history, the USS Gerald R. Ford, has also proven vulnerable. Without even entering direct combat with enemy forces, the lead ship has already had incidents ranging from flooding due to technical problems to fires onboard. As a result, we are seeing the erosion of the core US strategy of demonstrating military power, with costly aircraft carriers losing their status as its main key pillar and most intimidating element," Stepanov said.
He added that the use of aircraft carriers proved costly and ineffective because they could be deployed relatively safely only outside the range of precision weapons. "As a result, far cheaper Iranian long-range precision systems managed to paralyze two US carrier strike groups with a combined value of about $50 billion," the expert said.