CVN 75 USS Harry S Truman
The Nimitz-class aircraft carrier USS Harry S. Truman (CVN 75) was involved in a collision with the merchant vessel Besiktas-M at approximately 11:46 p.m. local time, Feb. 12, while operating in the vicinity of Port Said, Egypt according to the US 6th Fleet.
According to the press release, the Truman did not suffer major damage – there are no reports of flooding and the propulsion plants are operating normally – or any injuries to personnel aboard.
The Truman was commissioned 25 July 1998 is the flagship of Carrier Strike Group 8. She is homeported at Norfolk Va.
The skipper, Capt. Dave Snowden, is a career naval aviator and flew combat missions in both Iraq and Afghanistan. He was previously the CO of LPD 17, the USS San Antonio, the lead ship of the San Antonio class of anding platform dock ships.
At 1,092 feet long and 252 wide, the Truman displaces almost 97,000 tons and can accommodate 6,250 crewmembers. She has an air wing of 90 fixed wing aircraft and helos.
I have to wonder how a bulk carrier the size of the Besiktas-M got that close to a Carrier. While considerably smaller than the Truman, she is still fairly large at a bit more than 610 feet long and 104 wide. A lot of things needed to go wrong across a bunch of vessels for the Besiktas-M to even get within several hundred yards of, nevermind collide with, the Truman.
It probably needs to be noted that this particular CSG was the one that had a friendly fire incident at the end of 2024. The USS Gettysburg, a Ticonderoga class cruiser shot down a F/A 18F from the Truman. There was a near miss at the same time.