The U.S. naval deployment centered on Venezuela since August has cost more than $20 million per day and as much as nearly $3 billion overall, according to a Bloomberg analysis of the military buildup anchored by the aircraft carrier USS Gerald R. Ford and its accompanying ships, aircraft and support forces.
The estimate by Bloomberg reflects operating expenses for the strike group and associated units.
The news site explained that much of that spending had already been budgeted through the Pentagon‘s annual appropriations for operating deployed hardware, but analysts noted that extended deployments generate additional costs, including extra flight hours, munitions use and allowances tied to prolonged missions.
Mark Cancian of the Center for Strategic and International Studies told Bloomberg that the financial reality is unavoidable because “there is no contingency fund in the DOD budget for unexpected operations” and “conflicts cost extra.”
The carrier strike group’s presence formed the centerpiece of a broader U.S. force buildup in waters near Venezuela that at its peak involved a significant share of the Navy’s surface fleet, highlighting what defense planners describe as the opportunity cost of concentrating ships in one region rather than dispersing them globally.
The Ford’s deployment to the Caribbean began after it left Norfolk, Virginia, in June 2025 and was redirected from earlier European plans before arriving in Latin American waters in November as part of the largest U.S. military buildup in the region in decades.
U.S. officials have since informed the carrier’s crew that the ship is being reassigned to the Middle East, where it is expected to join another carrier strike group amid rising tensions involving Iran. The redeployment underscores a central logistical constraint of naval power projection: even a 100,000-ton supercarrier cannot operate in multiple theaters simultaneously, forcing commanders to shift assets as global priorities change.
The extended mission has already altered the ship’s operational schedule. The strike group’s deployment was previously prolonged once, and the new orders are expected to delay its return to home port until late spring, potentially affecting planned maintenance and overhaul timelines.
Originally published on Latin Times
