Carrier USS Abraham Lincoln Operates with Australians in the South China Sea

Dzirhan Mahadzir – September 15, 2026 2:09 PM

USS Abraham Lincoln (CVN-72) recently operated with Royal Australian Navy frigates in the South China Sea, the Australian Department of Defense announced Tuesday.

Frigates HMAS Perth (FFH157) and HMAS Stuart (FFH153) supported the Abraham Lincoln Carrier Strike Group during its transit of the South China Sea in accordance with international law, according to a news release.

“Australian Defense Force and the U.S. routinely train and operate together, increasing interoperability between our forces and strengthening our collective capabilities,” reads the release.

The news release did not disclose when the Australian frigates supported the U.S. strike group in the South China Sea. Imagery filed Sept. 6-11 by the Australian Defense Force shows Perth operating with aircraft carrier Abraham Lincoln in the South China Sea. Perth conducted a replenishment-at-sea with the carrier, according to the photos. Images of Stuart operating with the CSG have not been released.

The Abraham Lincoln CSG was operating in the South China Sea as of Monday, according to the USNI News Fleet and Marine Tracker. The strike group has been in the South China Sea since at least Sept. 8. The CSG transited the Singapore Strait on Aug. 30 and made a port call in Thailand from Sept. 2-6.

The CSG is due to conclude its deployment in the coming weeks. On Sept. 12, the CSG’s deployment hit 295 days – the second-longest carrier deployment since the end of the Cold War. The deployment is second only to the deployment of USS Gerald R. Ford (CVN-78) that ended in May. The strike group includes Abraham Lincoln, embarked Carrier Air Wing (CVW) 9, cruiser USS Robert Smalls (CG-62) and USS Frank E. Petersen Jr. (DDG-121).

Perth and Stuart sailed from Australia in July and August respectively as part of the ADF’s Regional Presence Deployment program and are continuing on to their next activities with Australia’s allies and partners, according to the release.

Perth was docked in Royal Malaysian Navy Kota Kinabalu Naval Base from Aug. 27-Sept. 1, according to a social media post from the RMN Eastern Fleet Command

Stuart departed Australia on Aug. 24 and as of Monday was docked in RMN Kota Kinabalu, according to a Tuesday social media post by the RMN offshore patrol vessel KD Selangor (176). The commanding officer of Stuart and crew members visited the docked RMN ship on Monday, reads the post.

Dzirhan Mahadzir

Dzirhan Mahadzir is a freelance defense journalist and analyst based in Kuala Lumpur Malaysia. Among the publications he has written for and currently writes for since 1998 includes Defence Review Asia, Jane’s Defence Weekly, Navy International, International Defence Review, Asian Defence Journal, Defence Helicopter, Asian Military Review and the Asia-Pacific Defence Reporter.

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