Sailors prepare to load an AIM-54C Phoenix missile onto the wing of an F-14 Tomcat.
Sailors from the ordnance department of the USS Independence (CV 62) prepare to load an AIM-54C Phoenix missile onto the wing of an F-14 Tomcat on the flight deck of the USS Independence (CV 62) while the ship operates in the Persian Gulf on March 4, 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. The Tomcat is attached to Fighter Squadron 154, Naval Air Facility Atsugi, Japan.