The afterburners of an F/A-18C Hornet bathe the flight deck in heat waves as it launches from the aircraft carrier USS Carl Vinson (CVN 70) on June 1, 2005. The Carl Vinson Carrier Strike Group is conducting operations in support of multi-national forces in Iraq and maritime security operations in the Persian Gulf. Vinson will end its deployment with a homeport shift to Norfolk, Va., to commence a three-year refuel and complex overhaul.

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Photo credit: © Vital Archive / Alamy / Afripics
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Keywords: /-18, 70, archive, armed, cvn, deck, defence, flight, forces, gulf, iraq, military, persian, reportage, samarra, servicemen, turn, usa, vinson, weapons