US aircraft carriers USS Eisenhower and USS Enterprise in the Red Sea off the Saudi Arabian coast

http://debka.com/headline.php?hid=3452

Exclusive to DEBKAfile's military sources: US aircraft carriers USS
Eisenhower and USS Enterprise in the Red Sea off the Saudi Arabian
coast

November 1, 2006, 2:20 PM (GMT+02:00)

The nuclear-powered aircraft carrier USS Eisenhower, and its
accompanying carrier strike group, passed through the Suez Canal on
Monday, Oct. 30, and arrived in the Red Sea on Tuesday, Oct. 31.

DEBKAfile's military sources report that the USS Eisenhower is at sea
off the Saudi Arabian coast, together with another aircraft carrier,
the USS Enterprise. The presence of the two US aircraft carriers, and
their accompanying strike groups, in a body of water as small as the
Red Sea is an extraordinary development.

So far there have been no indications that the USS Eisenhower arrived
to replace the USS Enterprise.

US Intelligence director John Negroponte also is in the region. He was
in Saudi Arabia over the weekend and in Cairo on Tuesday, and is due to
arrive in Israel on Wednesday, Nov. 1.

With the arrival of the USS Eisenhower in the region, there are now
three US aircraft carriers in the Persion Gulf and surrounding waters,
including the USS Iwo Jima. Accompanying the USS Eisenhower are the
guided-missile cruiser USS Anzio, the guided-missile destroyers USS
Ramage and USS Mason and the nuclear-powered fast-attack submarine USS
Newport.

DEBKAfile's military sources report that a fourth US aircraft
carrier, the USS Boxer, will arrive on the scene by the beginning of
next week, together with its carrier strike group. The USS Boxer is
currently taking part in joint US-Indian naval maneuvers, dubbed
Malabar '06, which include the landing of marines on beaches.

__________________________________________________ __


mildly interesting, but Debka overhypes the amount of U.S. naval power
in the middle east, and frequently calls a Carrier Battle Group a
'Carrier Strike Group'. they also count Wasp-class Marine assault
ships as aircraft carriers which is ridiculas even though they do carry
helicopters and a SMALL number of fixed-wing fighters, usually
harriers.

as far as what is known to the public, there are only 2 'real' USN
aircraft carrier battle groups in the region, not 4. oh and I
suppose you might count the French chicken-carrier in the eastern Med ?

now, even if one of the supercarriers is not going away, being relieved
by the other, leaving 2, that still doesn't make for a massive naval
build-up for offensive operations against Iran. more like a defensive
capability against Iranian retaliations. though I guess the USAF could
conduct most of the strikes against Iran with long range B-52, B-1B and
B-2 bombers. the USN and USAF could also use their SLBMs and ICBMs
loaded with newer earth-burrowing warheads with mini nukes to quickly
take out Iranian nuke facilities in a surprise attack. is there an
Ohio-class sub in the house ?

p.s. there is no way even the NeoCons will consider INVADING Iran. not
only would that be incredibly difficult if not suicidial, it would push
the Russians to built up their army divisions in the region and perhaps
move into northern Iran to prevent a western-take over.

Russia didn't really mind the U.S. taking Iraq since Iraq was always a
western proxy to fight Iran, dispite the years (1990-2004) of
villifying Saddam. Iran was a strategic ally of the Soviet Union (a
super power) and is still an ally of Russia (still a superpower) today.
perhaps more now than ever.


ok I'll stop taking geopolitics, and military strategy which i really
don't know much about..... LOL

Exclusive to DEBKAfile's military sources: US aircraft carriers USS
Eisenhower and USS Enterprise in the Red Sea off the Saudi Arabian
coast

November 1, 2006, 2:20 PM (GMT+02:00)

The nuclear-powered aircraft carrier USS Eisenhower, and its
accompanying carrier strike group, passed through the Suez Canal on
Monday, Oct. 30, and arrived in the Red Sea on Tuesday, Oct. 31.

This is true

DEBKAfile's military sources report that the USS Eisenhower is at sea
off the Saudi Arabian coast, together with another aircraft carrier,
the USS Enterprise. The presence of the two US aircraft carriers, and
their accompanying strike groups, in a body of water as small as the
Red Sea is an extraordinary development.

No, it happens all the time.

With the arrival of the USS Eisenhower in the region, there are now
three US aircraft carriers in the Persion Gulf and surrounding waters,
including the USS Iwo Jima. Accompanying the USS Eisenhower are the
guided-missile cruiser USS Anzio, the guided-missile destroyers USS
Ramage and USS Mason and the nuclear-powered fast-attack submarine USS
Newport.

Except that Iwo Jima is not an aircraft carrier, and that the
Enterprise has transited the Suez and is now in the Med. The two
carriers simply passed by each other in the Red Sea.

DEBKAfile's military sources report that a fourth US aircraft
carrier, the USS Boxer, will arrive on the scene by the beginning of
next week, together with its carrier strike group. The USS Boxer is
currently taking part in joint US-Indian naval maneuvers, dubbed
Malabar '06, which include the landing of marines on beaches.

Boxer is not an aircraft carrier.

http://debka.com/headline.php?hid=3452

Exclusive to DEBKAfile's military sources: US aircraft carriers USS
Eisenhower and USS Enterprise in the Red Sea off the Saudi Arabian
coast

November 1, 2006, 2:20 PM (GMT+02:00)

The nuclear-powered aircraft carrier USS Eisenhower, and its
accompanying carrier strike group, passed through the Suez Canal on
Monday, Oct. 30, and arrived in the Red Sea on Tuesday, Oct. 31.

DEBKAfile's military sources report that the USS Eisenhower is at sea
off the Saudi Arabian coast, together with another aircraft carrier,
the USS Enterprise. The presence of the two US aircraft carriers, and
their accompanying strike groups, in a body of water as small as the
Red Sea is an extraordinary development.

So far there have been no indications that the USS Eisenhower arrived
to replace the USS Enterprise.

snip remaining portion of ...

http://www.news.navy.mil/search/disp...story_id=26389

NNS061101-27. Enterprise Strike Group Concludes Operations in 5th Fleet

By Mass Communications Specialist 1st Class (SW) Jen Crenshaw,
Commander,
U.S. Naval Forces Central Command/ Commander, U.S. 5th Fleet Public
Affairs

USS ENTERPRISE, At Sea (NNS) -- The USS Enterprise (CVN 65) Carrier
Strike
Group, including Enterprise, Destroyer Squadron (DESRON) 2 and Carrier
Air
Wing (CVW) 1 successfully completed its second portion of operations in
the
U.S. 5th Fleet area of operations Nov. 1.
....

Can hardly wait for the next "prediction" from DEBKAfile's "military
sources" ... g