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AB AC AD AE AG AK AM AO AQ AS AT AW AX AZ BM BT BU
CE CM CS CT DC DK DM DP DS DT EA EM EN EO ET EW
FC FT GM GS (53-61) GS (78-Now) HM HT IC IM IS IT JO LI LN LS
MA (48-67) MA (72-Now) ME ML MM MN MR MS MT MU NAVY NC ND OM OS OT
PC PH PM PN PR QM RD (WW2) RD (48-72) RM SD SF SH SK SM
SO ST SV SW TM UT WT YN NAVY DIVER
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U.S.S. INDEPENDENCE

(CV-62)

FREEDOMS FLAGSHIP

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Named for the right of self-government, the fifth USS Independence was commissioned on Jan. 10, 1959. In 1960, she saw her first cruise to the Mediterranean. The year 1962 saw the ship helping with the Berlin crisis during that summer. The fall saw her go to the Caribbean to help with quarantining Cuba during the Russian missile crisis.

The ship continued cruising various Atlantic runs through 1965. In that year, she went on a run to the South China Sea. While there, her aircrews conducted thousands of sorties against the North Vietnamese troops. Upon her return to the east coast, the ship resumed her normal operations in the Atlantic and Mediterranean.

The 1970’s saw USS Independence carrying out more operations in the Mediterranean. She was the site of the first female US pilot to gain carrier qualification in 1979. In 1980, the ship was waiting when the American hostages were freed from Iran. During the next few years, she saw action in Lebanon and Grenada.

In 1990, the ship became the first carrier to enter the Persian Gulf in over 15 years. She helped with air support during and after Operation Desert Storm. The rest of the 1990’s saw her flying missions over southern Iraq and making visits to various Pacific ports. She was decommissioned on Sept. 30, 1998.

 

 

CV-62 Deployments - Major Events

Add a CV-62 Shellback Initiation Add a CV-62 Deployment - Major Event
Month Year to Month Year Deployment / Event
AUG1960-Shellback Initiation - 1 AUG 1960 - Atlantic Ocean
AUG1960-MAR1961Mediterranean
MAR1961-APR1961Bay of Pigs Invasion
APR1962-AUG1962Mediterranean
OCT1962-OCT1962Cuban Missle Blockade
JAN1963-JAN1964Antarctic Circle
SEP1963-MAR1964Mediterranean
SEP1963-MAR1964Mediterranean
JUL1964-Shellback Initiation - 7 JUL 1964 - Atlantic Ocean
AUG1964-NOV1964North Atlantic
JAN1965-DEC1965West Pac-Viet Nam
FEB1965-Shellback Initiation - 15 FEB 1965 - Atlantic Ocean
MAY1965-Shellback Initiation - 2 MAY 1965 - Atlantic Ocean
MAY1965-Shellback Initiation - 21 MAY 1965 - Atlantic Ocean
MAY1965-Shellback Initiation - 21 MAY 1965 - Pacific Ocean
MAY1965-DEC1965West Pac-Viet Nam
MAY1965-Shellback Initiation - 10 MAY 1965 - Pacific Ocean
JUN1965-NOV1965need to get cruise book
JUN1965-NOV1965West Pac-Viet Nam
JUN1966-FEB1967Mediterranean
APR1968-JAN1969Mediterranean
JUL1969-AUG1969Sortie in North Atlantic w/ stop in Portsmouth, England (Dates ?
JUN1970-JAN1971Mediterranean-Lebanon
MAR1971-APR1972Mediterranean
MAR1971-APR1972med cruise
SEP1971-MAR1972Blue Nose - Arctic Circle
SEP1971-MAR1972Mediterranean
SEP1971-APR1972North Atlantic-Med-Indian Ocean
SEP1971-APR1972Mediterranean-Lebanon
SEP1971-MAR1972Blue Nose - Arctic Circle
MAR1972-MAR1973Dry Dock
SEP1972-MAR1973Blue Nose - Arctic Circle
JAN1973-JAN1973Mediterranean-Indian Ocean
JAN1973-Shellback Initiation - 24 JAN 1973 - Atlantic Ocean
JAN1973- Shellback Initiation - 24 JAN 1973 - Atlantic Ocean
JAN1973- Shellback Initiation - 24 JAN 1973 - Atlantic Ocean
JAN1973-JAN1973Sea Trials
JAN1973- Shellback Initiation - 24 JAN 1973 - Atlantic Ocean
JUN1973- Shellback Initiation - 6 JUN 1973 - Atlantic Ocean
JUN1973- Shellback Initiation - 6 JUN 1973 - Atlantic Ocean
JUN1973-DEC1973North Atlantic-Med-Indian Ocean
JUN1973-Shellback Initiation - 6 JUN 1973 - Atlantic Ocean
JUN1974-FEB1975North Atlantic-Med-Indian Ocean
JUL1974-JAN1975Mediterranean
SEP1974-SEP1974Mediterranean
OCT1975-MAY1976North Atlantic-Med-Indian Ocean
JUN1976-JUN1976Mediterranean-Lebanon
MAR1977-OCT1977Mediterranean
MAR1977-OCT1977Mediterranean-Indian Ocean
JUN1979-DEC1979Mediterranean
OCT1979-Shellback Initiation - 9 OCT 1979 - Atlantic Ocean
NOV1980-Shellback Initiation - 29 NOV 1980 - Pacific Ocean
NOV1980-Shellback Initiation - 29 NOV 1980 - Indian Ocean
NOV1980- Shellback Initiation - 29 NOV 1980 - Indian Ocean
NOV1980- Shellback Initiation - 29 NOV 1980 - Indian Ocean
MAR1981-MAY1985North Atlantic-Med-Indian Ocean
APR1981- Shellback Initiation - 14 APR 1981 - Atlantic Ocean
MAY1981-Suez Canal (South to North)
JUN1982-DEC1982Mediterranean-Lebanon
OCT1983-NOV1983Grenada
OCT1984-FEB1985Mediterranean-Indian Ocean
APR1985-JAN1988Dry Dock
OCT1986-JAN1987Great Lakes
AUG1988-Shellback Initiation - 28 AUG 1988 - Atlantic Ocean
AUG1988- Shellback Initiation - 28 AUG 1988 - Atlantic Ocean
AUG1988- Shellback Initiation - 1 AUG 1988 - Atlantic Ocean
JAN1990-DEC1990Desert Shield
JAN1990-JAN1997West Pac
JUN1990-DEC1990West Pac-Indian Ocean-Persian Gulf
JUN1990-DEC1990West Pac-Indian Ocean
JUL1990-Shellback Initiation - 7 JUL 1990 - Indian Ocean
JUL1990-Shellback Initiation - 31 JUL 1990 - Indian Ocean
AUG1990-NOV1990Desert Shield
JAN1992-DEC1994West Pac-Indian Ocean-Persian Gulf
MAR1992-OCT1992West Pac-Indian Ocean-Persian Gulf
APR1992-Shellback Initiation - 25 APR 1992 - Pacific Ocean
APR1992- Shellback Initiation - 25 APR 1992 - Pacific Ocean
APR1992-Shellback Initiation - 25 APR 1992 - Indian Ocean
MAY1992-MAY199250th Anniversary Battle of Coral Sea - Sydney AU
JUN1992-OCT1992West Pac-Indian Ocean-Persian Gulf
DEC1992-DEC1994West Pac-Indian Ocean-Persian Gulf
JUN1993-Shellback Initiation - 25 JUN 1993 - Pacific Ocean
JUN1994-JUL1994RIMPAC
DEC1995-DEC1998West Pac-Indian Ocean-Persian Gulf
JAN1997-SEP1997Spring cruise
APR1997- Shellback Initiation - 27 APR 1997 - Pacific Ocean
JAN1998-MAY1998Southern Watch
FEB1998-Shellback Initiation - 1 FEB 1998 - Pacific Ocean
SEP1998-SEP1998Decommisioning
DEC2000-DEC2002West Pac-Indian Ocean-Persian Gulf
DEC2006-DEC2007West Pac-Indian Ocean-Persian Gulf

CV-62 General Specifications