US Navy aircraft carrier collides with vessel near Egypt, no injuries or flooding

PHOTO CAPTION: The Nimitz-class aircraft carrier USS Harry S. Truman (CVN 75) traverses the Atlantic Ocean. (DVIDS)

WASHINGTON (Reuters) -A U.S. Navy aircraft carrier collided with a merchant vessel near Egypt, the U.S. military said on Thursday, though the nuclear-powered carrier was stable and there were no injuries.

The United States military currently has 11 aircraft carriers and any damage requiring one of them to be sidelined could strain the Navy.

In a statement, the U.S. Navy said the carrier Harry Truman  collided with the Besiktas-M late Wednesday night while operating near Port Said in Egypt.

"The collision did not endanger the Harry S. Truman as there are no reports of flooding or injuries. The propulsion plants are unaffected and in a safe and stable condition," the Navy added.

While collisions involving U.S. Navy vessels are extremely rare, two warships in the Asia-Pacific were involved in crashes in 2017. The accidents, in which 17 sailors were killed, raised questions about Navy training and the pace of operations, prompted a Congressional hearing and the removal of a number of officers.

At 1,096-feet (333 metres), the Truman carrier is almost as long as the Empire State Building is tall – a city on the water for its 5,000-member crew.

The 4.5-acre flight deck can hold 90 aircraft, including F/A-18F Super Hornet striker jets. Missiles are carried onto parked jets and sailors run on treadmills in the hangar.

 (Reporting by Idrees Ali and Phil Stewart; Editing by Chizu Nomiyama)