On March 23, 2026, the USS Gerald R. Ford (CVN-78) — the lead ship of the US Navy's newest and most expensive class of aircraft carriers — arrived at Naval Support Activity Souda Bay on the Greek island of Crete. It was accompanied by three destroyers from its carrier strike group. It is there for repairs. It is not in the Iran war.
The proximate cause was a fire that broke out in the ship's aft laundry room on March 12. Officials who spoke to Reuters on condition of anonymity said nearly 200 sailors were treated for smoke-related injuries when the fire broke out. CNN reported on March 18 that the ship was moving away from Iran war operations to sail for the US Navy base in Crete — a statement confirmed by a US official.
The USS Gerald R. Ford is valued at $13 billion, according to The Guardian. It had been continuously deployed for approximately nine months. USNI News — the US Naval Institute's news arm, considered the authoritative source on US Navy operations — confirmed the arrival in Souda Bay on March 23 and described the ship as "in port for maintenance and repairs following a March 12 fire in the aft laundry room."
A laundry fire, on the most advanced warship in the world, has temporarily removed that warship from a shooting war.
Act 1: The Ship and Its Deployment
The Gerald R. Ford-class carriers represent the most significant redesign of American naval aviation in decades. The Ford (CVN-78) is the first of its class — replacing the Nimitz class that has formed the backbone of US carrier aviation since the 1970s. The ship uses electromagnetic catapults (EMALS) instead of steam-powered catapults, an advanced arresting gear system, and a modified nuclear reactor arrangement that was intended to reduce crew size and increase sortie generation rates.
The Ford has had a troubled development history. It was initially commissioned in 2017 but spent years in shipyard availability dealing with technology integration problems — particularly with EMALS and the Advanced Arresting Gear (AAG) systems. The ship did not reach initial operational capability until 2022. Its 2022 first deployment was its first real operational test at sea.
The March 2026 deployment, now roughly nine months in, had the Ford operating in support of Operation Epic Fury — 19FortyFive's term for the US military campaign associated with the Iran war. The ship was in the Red Sea region, providing air wing assets in support of US and allied operations.
Nine months at sea is at the outer edge of a normal carrier deployment cycle. Standard US carrier deployments typically run six to eight months. The Ford's nine-month continuous deployment reflects the operational tempo demands of the Iran war.
Act 2: What Happened on March 12
A fire broke out in the aft laundry room of the USS Gerald R. Ford on March 12, 2026. The Hill confirmed the date and location, reporting that "the ship was damaged due to a fire in the laundry room on March 12 amid the ongoing U.S.-Israeli war in Iran."
The Guardian, citing Reuters officials who spoke on condition of anonymity, reported that nearly 200 sailors were treated for smoke-related injuries. The fire was contained — the ship was not lost and did not sink — but the damage was sufficient to require port repairs that could not be performed at sea.
How long the Ford is expected to remain in Crete is not publicly known. The Guardian reported that officials "did not say how long the $13bn vessel was expected to remain in Crete." USNI News, which has the most detailed operational reporting, described the ship as "in port for maintenance and repairs" without specifying a timeline.
The presence of three destroyers accompanying the Ford into Souda Bay — noted by a ship spotter cited by USNI News, who observed the Ford and three destroyers transit the Suez Canal on March 22 — indicates the carrier strike group is in port collectively, not just the carrier alone.
19FortyFive described the Ford as having experienced additional maintenance challenges during the deployment beyond the fire, including problems described as "broken toilets" and mounting technical strain from the extended deployment — issues that 19FortyFive said contributed to what the outlet characterized as "sinking morale." The Guardian's headline used identical language: "Fire damage, clogged toilets, and sinking morale."
The specific nature and extent of the mechanical issues beyond the fire have not been confirmed in official US Navy statements reviewed for this article.
Act 3: What It Means for the Iran War
Business Insider described the Ford's arrival in Souda Bay as removing the carrier "from the fight — at least temporarily." 19FortyFive characterized it as "a critical inflection point for Operation Epic Fury in March 2026."
Aircraft carriers are not individual weapons — they are the center of carrier strike groups, which include cruisers, destroyers, submarines, and logistics vessels. The Ford's air wing, consisting of approximately 70–90 aircraft including F/A-18 Super Hornets, electronic warfare aircraft, and helicopters, was the primary offensive air power asset the carrier brought to the Iran conflict zone.
Removing a carrier and its air wing from an active theater does not end US air operations — the US has multiple carriers and significant land-based air assets operating in the region. But it reduces the density of available air power at a moment when the Iran war is in a sensitive diplomatic phase: Trump's 5-day pause on power plant strikes (announced March 23) is concurrent with the Ford's withdrawal from operations.
Whether the Ford's absence affects US military options during the 5-day diplomatic window is not confirmed. What is confirmed is that the most powerful surface combatant the US deployed to the Iran war theater is currently in a Greek port, not in the Red Sea.
Act 4: The Larger Question About the Ford Class
The Ford's troubled exit from the Iran war theater is the latest chapter in a long and expensive development saga that stretches back more than a decade.
The Gerald R. Ford-class program was designed to be the future of US naval power projection. The Ford (CVN-78) alone cost approximately $13 billion by the time it was commissioned — significantly over original projections. The EMALS electromagnetic catapult system, designed to replace steam catapults and reduce maintenance requirements, experienced chronic reliability problems in testing and early deployment. The Advanced Arresting Gear system had similar issues.
The Government Accountability Office published multiple reports through the late 2010s and early 2020s documenting reliability shortfalls. By 2022, the Navy reported that these systems had improved substantially. Whether they have held up under the demands of a nine-month combat deployment — including sustained high-tempo flight operations over the Iran war theater — is not publicly documented in the sources available for this article.
A laundry room fire, whatever its cause, is not a reflection of the EMALS system. But the broader pattern — a $13 billion ship needing extended port time during a major war — will generate questions in Congress about the Ford class program's readiness and reliability that the Navy will need to answer.
The Record
The USS Gerald R. Ford (CVN-78), the US Navy's most advanced and most expensive aircraft carrier at $13 billion, arrived at Naval Support Activity Souda Bay in Crete on March 23, 2026, for repairs following a fire in its aft laundry room on March 12. Nearly 200 sailors were treated for smoke-related injuries. The ship had been continuously deployed for approximately nine months.
The duration of the Crete port call is not publicly known. The Ford's absence removes the centerpiece of its carrier strike group from Iran war operations at a moment when diplomatic negotiations are underway.
The most powerful surface combatant America sent to the Iran war is in port. A laundry fire did what Iranian missiles could not.