Objective To explore the insomnia status and the influencing factors of navy soldiers during escort in Aden Gulf. Methods Totally 476 soldiers were collected by random cluster sampling method. The mental health status of the soldiers was assessed by Eysenck personality questionnaire-revised, short scale for Chinese (EPQ-RSC) and symptom check list-90 (SCL-90) at 1 week before the escort. At 2 months after the long voyage, the insomnia status and general situation were assessed using the insomnia severity index (ISI) scale and the general situation questionnaire, respectively. The multivariate linear regression analysis was conducted to analyze the influencing factors of insomnia. Results A total of 474 valid questionnaires were collected. During the escort, 44.1% (209/474) of the soldiers suffered from insomnia of different extents, with 28.1% (136/474) subthreshold insomnia, 13.5% (64/474) moderate insomnia and 1.9% (9/474) severe insomnia. The multivariate linear regression analysis showed that the times of escort, night duties and the frequency of oral ulcer were the influencing factors of insomnia (R²=0.68; standardized regression coefficients were -0.101, 0.111 and 0.172, respectively; all P<0.05). Meantime, emotional stability also influenced insomnia to a small extent (R²=0.03, standardized regression coefficient=0.173, P<0.05). Conclusion The sleep quality of the soldiers during long-time escort is severely influenced, with high prevalence of insomnia. The main influencing factors include the times of escort, night duties and the frequency of oral ulcer, and emotional stability may also be an influencing factor.