As Israel-Iran conflict looms, US sends nuclear sub, strike group to Middle East

The U.S. is sending a nuclear submarine and accelerating deployment of an aircraft carrier strike group to the Middle East as tensions rise between Israel and Iran .

Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin ordered the USS Georgia , an Ohio-class nuclear submarine carrying non-nuclear Tomahawk cruise missiles, to the region on Sunday.

The announcement is significant because the U.S. Navy almost never reveals the movements of its missile submarines.

Austin also ordered the USS Abraham Lincoln Carrier Strike Group and its F-35 and F-18 fighter jets to move quickly to the area.

Iran could be preparing to attack Israel after the killings of Hamas and Hezbollah leaders in Tehran and Beirut.

Lincoln strike group to replace Roosevelt ships

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Austin announced Aug. 2 that the Abraham Lincoln Strike Group will replace the USS Theodore Roosevelt Strike Group in the region. He also ordered more fighter jets, identified as F-22s, the Air Force's most sophisticated warplanes, to the area, USA TODAY reported.

Sunday's announcement came after Austin spoke by phone with Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant. Austin reasserted U.S. support for Israel, according to the Pentagon.

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USS Georgia at a glance

The USS Georgia is not the first American nuclear sub deployed to the region. The Defense Department sent the USS Florida (SSGN-728), another Ohio-class submarine, to the Middle East in November 2023.

The Florida fired an undisclosed number of Tomahawk missiles at Houthi targets in Yemen in January. The sub later left the Middle East and returned to its home port in Kings Bay, Georgia, in July after a 727-day deployment .

How many ships in USS Abraham Lincoln Strike Group?

In addition to its namesake aircraft carrier, the USS Abraham Lincoln strike group has fighter aircraft from Carrier Air Wing (CVW) Nine and three Arleigh Burke-class guided missile destroyers:

• USS O’Kane (DDG 77)
• USS Spruance (DDG 111)
• USS Frank E. Petersen Jr. (DDG 121)

The destroyers have computerized Aegis weapons systems , which combine radar, sensors and missiles to defend against air and surface threats .

Contributing: Tom Vanden Brook, Dan Morrison

Source: USA TODAY Network reporting and research; Reuters; Department of Defense; U.S. Central Command; U.S, Naval Institute; Lockheed Martin

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: As Israel-Iran conflict looms, US sends nuclear sub, strike group to Middle East