US sends third carrier strike group to Middle East in biggest buildup since 2003

The USS Theodore Roosevelt carrier strike group left San Diego on Sunday and is heading for the Middle East, adding to the two US aircraft carriers already operating against Iran in the biggest buildup in the region since the 2003 invasion of Iraq, according to US officials. The Theodore Roosevelt, a Nimitz-class nuclear-powered supercarrier and flagship of Carrier Strike Group 9, departed without ceremony — no sailors manning the rails, according to ship-spotter photographs. It is accompanied by the guided-missile cruiser USS Chosin and destroyer squadrons, with Carrier Air Wing 11 embarked, including F-35C and F/A-18 Super Hornet jets, electronic warfare and early-warning aircraft.