The late Mark L. Evans passed away in October 2021 after a courageous 8-year battle with cancer, with his wife Tracey by his side. He retired from the Department of the Navy in December 2020 after a 23-year tenure as a naval historian, after receiving the Navy's Superior Civilian Service Award, the highest honorary award given to a civilian employee. Mark contributed articles to Naval History Magazine, Naval Aviation News and authored a number of books including Great World War II Battles in the Arctic. Mark's final book, the USS Enterprise (CVN-65) was his last work and labor of love. Mark had the deepest respect and admiration for those who served our country. In honor of Mark and his fellow Veterans, proceeds from the sale of this book will be donated to the Veterans Organization Operation Second Chance (OSC).

Table of Contents

Acknowledgments

Preface

¿1.¿We Are Defending Our Homeland

¿2.¿Carry the Fight to the Enemy

¿3.¿Queen of the Seas

¿4.¿Offensive Action

¿5.¿Surprise Attack

¿6.¿A Full Retaliatory Response

¿7.¿A Smell of Burning Hung in the Air

¿8.¿We Will Test the Ability of These New Ships

¿9.¿The Order of Golden Shellbacks

10.¿To Slash at the Viet Cong

11.¿A New Era

12.¿In a Death Grip

13.¿Smoking Rubble

14.¿Pull Up! Pull Up!

15.¿Bandits

16.¿Untold Horror Exists Behind the Door

17.¿An Act of Piracy

18.¿Nuclear Options

19.¿Annihilate and Crush

20.¿The Dirtiest Type of Fighting

21.¿Both Guns Returning Enemy Fire

22.¿The Confidence of the MiG Pilots

23.¿Fire Roaring Across the Deck

24.¿A Quick and Telling Blow

25.¿Lose Confidence

26.¿No Advanced Warning

27.¿We Must Punish the Enemy

28.¿MiG Killers

29.¿From Generosity to Treachery

30.¿Anytime Baby

31.¿Rapidly Deteriorated

32.¿Extraordinary Reception

33.¿In All Seas and Oceans

34.¿Hell Lies Under the Arabian Gulf

35.¿The Line of Death

36.¿The Stark Has Been Hit

37.¿Vietnam Was Hovering Over Everyone's Shoulder

38.¿Incredible Bravery

39.¿We've Shed Enough Blood

40.¿Why We Are Really Here

41.¿To Make Saddam Pay

42.¿Broke His Undertakings

43.¿When You Least Expect It

44.¿We're Not Going Home

45.¿Fight to the Death

46.¿A Whole New Attack

47.¿You Never Defeated US

48.¿A Conflict of a Different Kind

49.¿We Are a Nation at War

50.¿The Character of America

Appendix 1: Commanding Officers

Appendix 2: Principal Deployments

Chapter Notes

Bibliography

Index