How the Iran war exposed the US Navy’s chronic problems

The US Navy is facing increasingly long deployments as depleted interceptor stockpiles as aircraft carriers struggle to cope with Donald Trump’s eight-month Iran war and other commitments. Is America overstretched at sea?On today’s episode of Iran: the Latest, Roland Oliphant is joined by RUSI naval warfare experts Dr. Sidharth Kaushal and Professor Kevin Rowlands to discuss the chronic problems within the US Navy, from an ageing carrier fleet to the lack of regular maintenance. They discuss why the Strait of Hormuz has been so hard to resolve militarily and how much longer Trump can continue to fight Iran. Plus, in Yemen, the Iran-backed Houthis have fired ballistic missiles at Saudi airports as the Riyadh-backed government forces recapture the key Red Sea port of Mocha as part of a major push. What does this latest news mean for the Bab al-Mandeb chokepoint?HighlightsHow the Iran war exposed the US Navy’s chronic problemsHouthis strike Saudi airports as Yemen forces retake Mocha portCONTRIBUTORS:Roland Oliphant, co-host and chief foreign affairs analyst @RolandOliphantKevin Rowlands, RUSI journal editor @c21st_sailorDr Sidharth Kaushal, RUSI senior research fellow sea powerWATCH US ON YOUTUBE: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLJnf_DDTfIVAif-vifC6F2aoPB8GIw6dkCONTENT REFERENCED:Saudi-backed forces run over surrendering Houthis with truckshttps://www.telegraph.co.uk/world-news/2026/10/05/saudi-deploys-100-fighter-jets-to-retake-red-sea/Iran ‘plotted Spider Web-style drone attack on RAF Fairford’https://www.telegraph.co.uk/us/news/2026/10/05/vance-bombers-fairford-iran-threat/Tom Sharpe: It’s advantage Trump in the Strait of Hormuzhttps://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2026/10/06/strait-hormuz-oil-crude-iran-war-strikes-red-sea-trump/RUSI: The Overstretch Facing the US Navyhttps://www.rusi.org/explore-our-research/publications/commentary/overstretch-facing-us-navyWinner Best News and Analysis Podcast - Publisher Podcast Awards 2026Bronze Best News, Politics and Current Affairs - British Podcast Awards 2026Nominated Podcast of the Year - Society of Editors News Podcasts Awards 2026The Telegraph, Winner Podcast Publisher of the Year 2026 - Publisher Podcast Awards 2026Producers: Peter Shevlin and Max Bower Researcher and Social Producer: Anna HindmarshStudio Operator: Andy WatsonExecutive Producer: Venetia Rainey ► Sign up to our most popular newsletter, From the Editor. Look forward to receiving free-thinking comment and the day's biggest stories, every morning. telegraph.co.uk/fromtheeditor► EMAIL US: Contact the team on battlelines@telegraph.co.uk► GET THE LATEST HEADLINES: Find all our latest Iran coverage here: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/iran-war/ Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.