USS America (CV-66) - Gulf War Vet w Gulf War SVC Pillow

On 9 January 1991, the America Battle Group transited the Strait of Gibraltar and sailed into the Mediterranean. Less than a week later, on 15–16 January, she passed through the Suez Canal and into the Red Sea on the U.N.-imposed deadline for Iraq's unconditional withdrawal from Kuwait. The America joined the Saratoga and John F. Kennedy Battle Groups to form Battle Force Red Sea. At 02:00 hours (Saudi time) on 17 January, Operation Desert Shield became Operation Desert Storm. America's embarked airwing, CVW-1, initially provided Combat Air Patrol coverage over the battle force. On the second day of the war, America launched its first air strikes, targeting and destroying an ammunition depot north of Baghdad. In the next day's darkness, CVW