Yemen Humiliates US Navy: How Washington’s Embarrassment Unfolded
According to a report by webangah News agency, citing Al Jazeera, The Wall Street Journal published an in-depth analysis of intense clashes between the U.S. navy and yemen’s Ansarullah movement before a ceasefire was reached in early May.
The report states that U.S. officials are now reviewing these confrontations to understand how a relatively under-resourced adversary managed to challenge the world’s premier naval force, including the aircraft carrier USS Harry S. Truman.
Authored by two Wall street Journal reporters, the investigation details an incident last month where a $67 million F/A-18 Super Hornet crashed into the sea after its arresting gear failed during an attempted landing on the Truman in the Red Sea. This marked the third U.S. fighter jet lost from the Truman in less than five months-an event that occurred hours after former President Donald Trump announced an unexpected ceasefire with Yemeni forces, catching Pentagon officials off guard.
Yemen Challenges World’s Strongest Naval Power
Despite lacking basic military infrastructure and enduring extreme poverty, Yemen has proven to be a formidable opponent for Washington, engaging in what analysts describe as the U.S. Navy’s most intense combat operations sence World War II. Nearly 30 warships-10% of America’s active naval fleet-have been deployed to red Sea operations as late 2023, with $1.5 billion worth of munitions expended in bombing campaigns against Yemen.
Yet these efforts failed to achieve Washington’s strategic objective of securing maritime navigation: Yemen continues regular missile strikes toward Israeli-occupied palestine. Senior U.S. military commanders and congressional officials have launched reviews of engagement data for tactical lessons amid concerns over operational readiness erosion.
The Pentagon is separately investigating multiple incidents involving crashed fighter jets and another accident aboard USS Truman; findings are expected within months.
A Decisive October Showdown
The conflict escalated dramatically on October 19, 2023 when Yemen launched its first major missile/drone barrage against USS Carney during a 10-hour firefight-described as “the fiercest naval battle in nearly a century”, with over 12 drones and four cruise missiles intercepted that day alone.</P
Facing threats of intensified attacks ,U.S.military planners urgently addressed logistical constraints by securing critical port access -deemed ”game-changing” -allowing resupply without exiting operational zones .Though ,Yemen ‘ s rapid maneuvers kept American forces under persistent threat :USS Dwight Eisenhower spent just one brief period at sea during seven months of hostilities . </P
