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Photos

Snapshots of what’s happening in the Defense Department.

A flight deck handler aboard the aircraft carrier USS Independence (CV 62) is engulfed in steam as he directs an F/A-18 Hornet to the catapult for launch while the ship operates in the Persian Gulf on Feb. 11, 1998. Independence and its embarked Carrier Air Wing 5 are on station in the Persian Gulf in support of Operation Southern Watch which is the U.S. and coalition enforcement of the no-fly-zone over Southern Iraq.

A flight deck handler is engulfed in steam as he directs an F/A-18 Hornet.

A flight deck handler aboard the aircraft carrier USS Independence (CV 62) is engulfed in steam as he directs an F/A-18 Hornet to the catapult for launch while the ship operates in the Persian Gulf on Feb. 11, 1998. Independence and its embarked Carrier Air Wing 5 are on station in the Persian Gulf in support of Operation Southern Watch which is the U.S. and coalition enforcement of the no-fly-zone over Southern Iraq.

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