Sam LaGrone – November 21, 2025 5:03 PM
The U.S. is maintaining a steady aircraft carrier presence in the South China Sea as both allied and Chinese military activity remains high around the contested Scarborough Shoal off the coast of the Philippines.
Japan-based USS George Washington (CVN-73) entered the South China Sea via the Luzon Strait on Nov. 17 following the departure of the Nimitz Carrier Strike Group on the same day.
As of Friday, the strike group was operating near the salvage site of two U.S. Navy aircraft assigned to USS Nimitz (CVN-68) that crashed last month in the South China Sea.
Navy salvage ship USNS Salvor (T-ARS-52) is searching for an F/A-18F Super Hornet and an MH-60R Sea Hawk helicopter that crashed within half an hour of each other, a Navy official confirmed to USNI News.
Nimitz departed the South China Sea after a trilateral exercise near Scarborough Shoal with the warships from Japan and the Philippines.
The two-day exercise included the Nimitz strike group, Japanese destroyer JS Akebono (DD 108), Philippine Navy flagship BRP Jose Rizal (FF 150) and frigate BRP Antonio Luna (FF 151), and Philippine Coast Guard cutters BRP Melchora Aquino (MRRV 9702) and BRP Cape San Agustin (MRRV 4408).
The joint patrol prompted protests from Beijing and an overflight of Chinese bombers. On Friday, the Philippine Coast Guard reported two People’s Liberation Army Navy warships and three China Coast Guard cutters were operating in the vicinity of Scarborough Shoal.
Nimitz is on the way home from its deployment after at least one extension, USNI News understands. The carrier left San Diego, Calif., for its final deployment in March. As of Friday, Nimitz had been deployed for 240 days.
Sam LaGrone
Sam LaGrone is the editor of USNI News. He has covered legislation, acquisition and operations for the Sea Services since 2009 and spent time underway with the U.S. Navy, U.S. Marine Corps and the Canadian Navy.
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