A team of aviation ordnancemen cradle an AIM-7 Sparrow medium range air-to-air missile as they load onto an F/A-18 Hornet on the flight deck of the USS Independence (CV 62) while the ship operates in the Persian Gulf on Feb. 7, 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.