On 10 March 1986, "Caron" departed Norfolk, Virginia with the carrier battle group, for a Mediterranean deployment. During this deployment, the Action in the Gulf of Sidra took place during a freedom of navigation exercise in the Gulf of Sidra. This action saw U.S. Navy fighter aircraft shoot two Libyan Air Force fighters down. On 23 March 1986, operating with and , "Caron" moved south of the Libya–claimed "Line of Death". Libya reacted with two days of low intensity conflict in which "Caron" did not fire any weapons.