Earlier this year, a United States Navy aircraft carrier was involved in a collision with a cargo vessel while operating in the Mediterranean Sea—an accident that left it with visible damage. Now, nearly eight months after that incident, the same warship still shows clear signs of the collision. Although fresh paint has been applied to mask the blemishes, the underlying damage remains unresolved, indicating that the vessel continues to require structural repairs.
During a recent ceremony held at Naval Station Norfolk in Virginia, where the U.S. Navy commemorated its 250th anniversary, sailors aboard the USS *Harry S. Truman* once again observed the persistent damage. The event brought together thousands of service members to celebrate a quarter of a millennium of naval history. Among the distinguished guests was President Donald Trump, who delivered remarks paying tribute to the Navy’s enduring legacy and role in U.S. defense. Yet, behind the scenes, a subtle but telling image caught sailors’ attention: evidence of damage discreetly obscured beneath a newly mounted Navy banner.
A sailor attending the celebration captured a photograph of the *Truman* that later came into Business Insider’s possession. The image reveals a massive poster affixed to the carrier’s hull, strategically concealing the area struck during the accident. According to the sailor—who chose to remain anonymous to avoid professional repercussions—the placement of the sign seemed carefully calculated to block most viewing angles that would otherwise expose the imperfections in the ship’s exterior. Once the photo was shared online, it quickly gained traction across social media, prompting speculation that the cover-up was a deliberate attempt to minimize the visual impact of the damage during a highly publicized event.
When approached for comment, Navy representatives declined to explain why the damaged areas of the *Truman* have still not undergone full repair or to clarify whether the decision to use the banner was intentionally cosmetic. The episode has inevitably resurrected broader questions about optics, particularly when the Navy hosts events for a public audience or high-ranking officials. Observers were quick to draw parallels to 2019, when the White House reportedly asked the Navy to conceal the *USS John S. McCain*—a destroyer named after a Senate critic of President Trump—during his visit to Japan. That request underscored the recurring sensitivity surrounding appearances and presentation within the Navy’s public engagements with the former president, who has long emphasized visual perfection in naval hardware, from design aesthetics to the absence of rust.
The collision that sparked this controversy occurred on February 12, when the Nimitz-class aircraft carrier *USS Harry S. Truman* encountered the merchant vessel *Besiktas-M* near Egypt’s Port Said while operating in the Mediterranean. At the time, the carrier had recently been stationed in the Red Sea as part of ongoing U.S. efforts to safeguard vital commercial waterways from attacks attributed to Houthi rebels. The incident left the carrier with external damage concentrated in several critical areas, including a line-handling compartment, the fantail, and sections above and around storage and maintenance spaces. These compartments form part of the ship’s lower exterior, meaning that although the core capabilities of the carrier remained intact, the visual and structural damage was significant.
In the wake of the collision, Captain Dave Snowden, then commanding officer of the *Truman*, assured the public and naval leadership that the ship had retained full operational capability and continued conducting flight operations. Nonetheless, he acknowledged the necessity of additional repairs to restore the vessel to optimal condition. Shortly thereafter, Snowden was relieved of command, a move that often signals dissatisfaction with an officer’s handling of an incident. Following the collision, the carrier proceeded to a U.S. naval facility in Greece for what is known as “emergent repair availability” — a specialized process designed to allow ships to receive urgent maintenance while remaining deployed overseas. Within approximately twelve days, by February 24, the *Truman* was once again underway in the Mediterranean, performing its standard operational duties and later returning to contribute to missions countering Houthi aggression.
The accident was not an isolated episode in what became a complex and eventful deployment for the *Truman*. During the same period, the carrier suffered a series of additional mishaps, including the loss of three F/A-18 Super Hornet jets—one reportedly due to a friendly fire incident. Each of these aircraft, valued at around $60 million, represented both a financial and strategic loss. These cumulative setbacks painted a picture of a demanding deployment in which the carrier and its crew faced both environmental hazards and the inherent complexities of modern naval operations.
When the *Harry S. Truman* finally returned to its homeport in Norfolk in June, marking the conclusion of its lengthy Middle East assignment, it carried with it not only the scars of combat support duties but also the physical evidence of its earlier collision. Observers noted that sometime prior to the Navy’s anniversary celebration, the damaged exterior appeared to have been repainted to match the vessel’s dark gray hull—a superficial measure that improved its appearance but did not address the underlying structural deficiencies. Sailors who examined the site suggested that since the damage was largely cosmetic and did not hamper the ship’s combat or navigational functionality, it was likely classified as a lower priority on the Navy’s extensive maintenance schedule.
Despite the absence of an official Navy statement, it is presumed that the unrepaired sections of the hull will be addressed during the ship’s upcoming refueling and complex overhaul (RCOH)—a midlife process that every nuclear-powered aircraft carrier undergoes to renew its reactor core and modernize key systems. Commissioned in 1998, the *Truman* is approaching that crucial maintenance milestone. The overhaul will enable the vessel to continue serving effectively for roughly another twenty years, ensuring that it remains a vital component of the U.S. naval fleet. Huntington Ingalls Industries, the country’s primary shipbuilder and a longstanding defense contractor, was awarded a contract worth $913 million to carry out this extensive work at its Newport News facility. Representatives from the company, however, have not yet provided details regarding the specific timeline for the project’s commencement or expected completion.
Ultimately, the persistently visible yet superficially treated damage on the *Harry S. Truman* serves as a symbolic intersection of appearance and substance within military institutions. It highlights the tension between maintaining operational readiness, addressing deferred maintenance, and projecting an image of perfection that aligns with public and political expectations. While the carrier remains fully mission-capable, the painted-over scars on its hull stand as a quiet reminder that not all repairs take place at once—and that in matters both mechanical and institutional, surface restoration can sometimes conceal more than it resolves.
Sourse: https://www.businessinsider.com/us-navy-aircraft-carrier-still-damaged-months-after-collision-2025-10
