Petty Officer 3rd Class Kevin P. Spurrell directs an E-2C Hawkeye onto one of the bow catapults during launch preparations on the flight deck of the aircraft carrier USS Nimitz (CVN 68) on Dec. 24, 1997. The Nimitz and embarked Carrier Air Wing 9 are operating in the Persian Gulf in support of Operation Southern Watch which is the and coalition enforcement of the no-fly-zone over Southern Iraq. Spurrell is a Navy aviation boatswainХs mate from Duncanville, Texas.

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Photo credit: © Vital Archive / Alamy / Afripics
License: Licensed
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Keywords: 68, aircraft, archive, armed, catapult, cvn, deck, defence, director, flight, forces, military, nimitz, people, reportage, servicemen, usa, uss