USS Coral Sea ( CV - 43 ) USS " Coral Sea " ( CV / CVB / CVA - 43 ) , a , was the third ship of the United States Navy to be named for the Battle of the Coral Sea . She earned the affectionate nickname " " Ageless Warrior " " through her long career . Initially classified as an aircraft carrier with hull classification symbol CV - 43 , the contract to build her was awarded to Newport News Shipbuilding of Newport News , Virginia on 14 June 1943 . She was reclassified as a " Large Aircraft Carrier " with hull classification symbol CVB - 43 on 15 July 1943 . Her keel was laid down on 10 July 1944 . She was launched on 2 April 1946 sponsored by Mrs . Thomas C . Kinkaid , and commissioned on 1 October 1947 with Captain A . P . Storrs III in command . Before 8 May 1945 , the aircraft carrier CVB - 42 had been known as USS " Coral Sea " ; after that date , CVB - 42 was renamed in honor of Franklin D . Roosevelt , the late President , and CVB - 43 was named " Coral Sea " . Early Milestones . The ship promptly began a series of career milestones when , on 27 April 1948 , two P2V - 2 Neptune s , piloted by Commander Thomas D . Davies and Lieutenant Commander John P . Wheatley , made jet assisted take - off s ( JATO ) from the carrier as it steamed off Norfolk , Virginia . This was the first carrier launchings of planes of this size and weight . " Coral Sea " sailed from Norfolk , Virginia on 7 June 1948 for a midshipmen cruise to the Mediterranean Sea and Caribbean Sea , and returned to Norfolk , Virginia 11 August . After an overhaul period , " Coral Sea " was again operating off the Virginia Capes . On 7 March 1949 , a P2V - 3C Neptune , piloted by Captain John T . Hayward of VC - 5 , was launched from the carrier with a 10 , 000 - load of dummy bombs . The aircraft flew across the continent , dropped its load on the West Coast , and returned nonstop to land at the Naval Air Station Patuxent River , Maryland . Following training in the Caribbean Sea , " Coral Sea " sailed 3 May 1949 for her first tour of duty in the Mediterranean Sea with the Sixth Fleet , returning 28 September . Operations in the 1950s . On 21 April 1950 , the first carrier takeoff of an AJ - 1 Savage heavy attack bomber was made from " Coral Sea " by Captain John T . Hayward of VC - 5 . The remainder of the pilots of the squadron completed carrier qualifications on board " Coral Sea " in this aircraft on 31 August , marking the introduction of this long - range attack bomber to carrier operations . At this time , " Coral Sea " returned to the Mediterranean Sea for duty with the Sixth Fleet from 9 September 1950 to 1 February 1951 . An overhaul and local operations upon her return , as well as training with Air Group 17 , prepared her for a return to the Mediterranean Sea once more on 20 March 1951 . As flagship for Commander , Carrier Division 6 , she took part in a North Atlantic Treaty Organization Exercise Beehive I . She returned to Norfolk , Virginia 6 October for local and Caribbean Sea operations , next sailing for the Mediterranean Sea on 19 April 1952 . While on service with the Sixth Fleet , she visited Yugoslavia , and carried Marshal Josip Broz Tito on a one - day cruise to observe carrier operations . The ship was reclassified as an " Attack Aircraft Carrier " with hull classification symbol CVA - 43 on 1 October 1952 while still at sea , and she returned to Norfolk , Virginia for overhaul 12 October . " Coral Sea " trained pilots in carrier operations off the Virginia Capes and Mayport , Florida , and in April 1953 she embarked the Judiciary Committee of the United States House of Representatives for a three - day cruise . On 26 April , the carrier sailed for a tour of duty in the Mediterranean Sea . This cruise was highlighted by a visit to Spain , and participation in NATO Exercise Black Wave with Deputy Secretary of Defense R . M . Kyes on board as an observer . Returning to Norfolk , Virginia on 21 October , she carried out tests for the Bureau of Aeronautics and trained members of the Naval Reserve at Mayport , Florida , and Guantanamo Bay . " Coral Sea " returned to the Mediterranean Sea from 7 July to 20 December 1954 , and during this tour was visited by Generalissimo Francisco Franco as she lay off Valencia , Spain . On her next tour of duty in the Mediterranean Sea from 23 March to 29 September 1955 , she called at Istanbul , and participated in NATO exercises . Sailing from Norfolk , Virginia 23 July 1956 for Mayport , Florida , to embark Carrier Air Group 10 , " Coral Sea " continued on to the Mediterranean Sea on her next tour . She participated in NATO exercises , and received Paul , King of the Hellenes , and his consort , Friederike Luise Thyra of Hannover on board as visitors in October . During the Suez Crisis , " Coral Sea " evacuated American citizens from the troubled area , and stood by off Egypt until November . She returned to Norfolk , Virginia 11 February 1957 . She cleared that port on 26 February and visited Santos , Brazil ; Valparaíso , Chile ; and Balboa , Canal Zone , before arriving at Bremerton , Washington , on 15 April . " Coral Sea " was decommissioned at the Puget Sound Naval Shipyard on 24 May 1957 to receive a major conversion ( SCB - 110A ) , which included an angled deck , relocation of her elevators to the deck edge , new steam catapults , an enclosed hurricane bow , hull blisters , removal of the armor belt and several anti - aircraft guns , and other changes . Upon completion , she was recommissioned on 25 January 1960 and rejoined the fleet . During September 1960 , she conducted training with her new air group along the West Coast , then sailed in September for a tour of duty with the Seventh Fleet in the Far East on her first WestPac ( Western Pacific cruise ) . Vietnam and operations in the 1960s to early 1970s . Installation of the Pilot Landing Aid Television ( PLAT ) system was completed on " Coral Sea " on 14 December 1961 . She was the first carrier to have this system installed for operations use . Designed to provide a videotape of every landing , the system proved useful for instructional purposes and in the analysis of landing accidents , thereby making it an invaluable tool in the promotion of safety . By 1963 , all attack carriers had been equipped with PLAT and plans were underway for installation in the CVSs and at shore stations . Following the Gulf of Tonkin Incident in August , " Coral Sea " departed on 7 December 1964 for duty with the Seventh Fleet . On 7 February 1965 , aircraft from " Coral Sea " , along with those from " Ranger " and " Hancock " , blasted the military barracks and staging areas near Dong Hoi in the southern sector of North Vietnam . The raids were in retaliation for a damaging Viet Cong attack on installations around Pleiku in South Vietnam . On 26 March , the Seventh Fleet units began their participation in Operation Rolling Thunder , a systematic bombing of military targets throughout North Vietnam . Pilots from " Coral Sea " struck island and coastal radar stations in the vicinity of Vinh Son . " Coral Sea " remained on deployment until returning home on 1 November 1965 . The Coral Sea made another Westpac / Vietnam deployment from 29 July 1966 to 23 February 1967 . In the summer of 1967 the city of San Francisco adopted the ship as " San Francisco ' s Own . " This might seem ironic given the strong anti - military sentiment in the San Francisco Bay area , and the fact that this occurred during the Summer of Love . Despite this , the city and the ship enjoyed a formal , official relationship . However , there were probably many times the crew did not enjoy the attitudes of Bay Area residents at all . The feeling was mutual . In July 1968 , prior to a deployment to Vietnam , " Coral Sea " participated in the carrier trials of the US Navy ' s proposed new interceptor , the General Dynamics - Grumman F - 111B . The ship continued to make WestPac / Vietnam deployments until 1975 : 26 July 1967 to 6 April 1968 ; 7 September 1968 to 15 April 1969 ; 23 September 1969 to 1 July 1970 ; 12 November 1971 to 17 July 1972 ; 9 March 1973 to 8 November ; and from 5 December 1974 to 2 July 1975 . Operations by United States Navy and United States Marine Corps aircraft in Vietnam expanded significantly throughout April 1972 with a total of 4 , 833 Navy sorties in the south and 1 , 250 in the north . " Coral Sea " , along with " Hancock " , was on Yankee Station when the North Vietnam ese spring offensive began . They were joined in early April by " Kitty Hawk " and " Constellation " . On 16 April 1972 , aircraft from " Coral Sea " , along with those from " Kitty Hawk " and " Constellation " , flew 57 sorties in the Haiphong area in support of U . S . Air Force B - 52 Stratofortress strikes on the Haiphong petroleum products storage area in an operation known as Freedom Porch . After refitting , from 1970 through to 1971 , and during refresher training ( REFTRA ) down to San Diego , the " Coral Sea " on its return trip to Alameda caught fire in the communications department . The fire spread so fast that Captain William H . Harris commanded that the carrier be put just off shore between San Mateo and Santa Barbara in order to abandon ship if the fire could not be put under control . Several communications personnel were trapped and Radiomen Bob Bilbo and Bill Larimore pulled many shipmates out of the burning and smoke filled compartments . Operation Pocket Money , the mining campaign against principal North Vietnam ese ports , was launched 9 May 1972 . Early that morning , an EC - 121 aircraft took off from Da Nang airfield to provide support for the mining operation . A short time later , " Kitty Hawk " launched 17 ordnance - delivering sorties against the Nam Dinh railroad siding as a diversionary air tactic . Poor weather , however , forced the planes to divert to secondary targets at Thanh and Phu Qui . " Coral Sea " launched three A - 6A Intruder s and six A - 7E Corsair II aircraft loaded with naval mine s and one EKA - 3B Skywarrior in support of the mining operation directed against the outer approaches to Haiphong Harbor . The mining aircraft departed the vicinity of " Coral Sea " timed to execute the mining at precisely 09 : 00 local time to coincide with President Richard M . Nixon ' s public announcement in Washington that naval mine s had been seeded . The Intruder flight led by the CAG , Commander Roger E . Sheets , was composed of United States Marine Corps aircraft from VMA - 224 and headed for the inner channel . The Corsairs , led by Commander Leonard E . Giuliani and made up of aircraft from VA - 94 and VA - 22 , were designated to mine the outer segment of the channel . Each aircraft carried four MK52 - 2 mines . Captain William R . Carr , USMC , the bombardier / navigator in the lead plane , established the critical attack azimuth and timed the naval mine releases . The first mine was dropped at 08 : 59 and the last of the field of 36 mines at 09 : 01 . Twelve mines were placed in the inner harbor and the remaining 24 in the outer . All mines were set with 72 - hour arming delays , thus permitting merchant ships time for departure or a change in destination consistent with the President ' s public warning . It was the beginning of a mining campaign that planted over 11 , 000 MK36 type destructor and 108 special Mk 52 - 2 mines over the next eight months . It is considered to have played a significant role in bringing about an eventual peace arrangement , particularly since it so hampered the enemy ' s ability to continue receiving war supplies . Paris Peace Accords , Fall of Saigon , Mayaguez Incident . The Paris Peace Accords , ending hostilities in Vietnam , were signed on 27 January 1973 , ending four years of talks . North Vietnam released nearly 600 American prisoners by 1 April , and the last U . S . combat troops departed Vietnam on 11 August . However , the war was not over for the Vietnamese . By spring 1975 , the North was advancing on the South . " Coral Sea " , " Midway " , " Hancock " , " Enterprise " , and " Okinawa " responded on 19 April 1975 to the waters off South Vietnam when North Vietnam overran two - thirds of South Vietnam . On 29 – 30 April 1975 , Operation Frequent Wind was carried out by Seventh Fleet forces . Hundreds of U . S . personnel and Vietnamese were evacuated from Saigon to the ships of the Seventh Fleet lying off Vung Tau . South Vietnam surrendered to the North on 30 April . On 12 to 14 May 1975 , " Coral Sea " participated with other United States Navy , United States Air Force , and United States Marine Corps forces in the Mayaguez incident , the recovery of the U . S . merchant ship SS " Mayaguez " and her 39 crew , illegally seized on 12 May in international waters by a Cambodian gunboat controlled by the Communist Khmer Rouge . Protective air strikes flown from the carrier against the Cambodian mainland naval and air installations as Air Force helicopters with 288 Marines from Battalion Landing Teams 2 and 9 were launched from U Tapao , Thailand , and landed at Koh Tang Island to rescue the " Mayaguez ' s " crew and secure the ship . Eighteen Marines , Airmen , and Navy corpsmen were lost in the action . For her action , " Coral Sea " was presented the Meritorious Unit Commendation on 6 July 1976 . Meanwhile , she had been reclassified as a " Multi - Purpose Aircraft Carrier " , returning to hull classification symbol CV - 43 , on 30 June 1975 . Iranian Hostage Crisis , Final Western Pacific Cruise . On 4 November 1979 militant followers of the Ayatollah Khomeini ( who had come to power following the overthrow of the Shah of Iran ) seized the US Embassy in Tehran and held 63 Americans hostage . Thus began the Iranian Hostage Crisis . The " Coral Sea " relieved the " Midway " in the northern part of the Arabian Sea , off the coast of Iran , on 5 February 1980 . This operating area was nicknamed Gonzo Station by the men on the ships operating there , apparently because of its vicinity to Iran and the assumption that war with Iran was likely . Later , along with the USS Nimitz and other ships in company , the " Coral Sea " participated in Operation Evening Light , the unsuccessful and aborted rescue attempt of 24 April 1980 . ( Aircraft were launched from the " Nimitz " and the " Coral Sea " played a supporting role . ) The crew of the " Coral Sea " and other ships in company received the Navy Expeditionary Medal for their efforts . By the time the ship pulled into Subic Bay , the Philippines for a port call on 9 May 1980 the crew had spent 102 consecutive days at sea – mostly off the coast of Iran . ( The Iranian Hostage Crisis ended on 20 January 1981 when Ronald Reagan succeeded Jimmy Carter as President of the United States and Iran released the Americans . ) At this time ( 1979 - 1981 ) the ship was commanded by Captain ( later Admiral ) Richard Dunleavy , who was to play a role in the Tailhook scandal , which forced him into retirement . However , while commanding the Coral Sea he was considered an excellent commanding officer by his crew , who respected him greatly , even though they worked long , difficult hours under him and he could be a strict disciplinarian . On 10 June 1980 the " Coral Sea " returned to her homeport of Alameda . Shortly after its return the San Francisco Bay area press reported the theft of a set of golden bear statues from the ship . These statues had been presented to the " Coral Sea " by the city of San Francisco after the city had adopted it as " San Francisco ' s Own . " Two sailors from the " Coral Sea " were caught with the statues after attempting to sell them , and the sailors were subsequently court - martialed and sentenced to prison . All of the statues were recovered in good shape . The ship embarked on her final Western Pacific deployment on 20 August 1981 . After making port calls at Pearl Harbor and Subic Bay , the Philippines , the ship operated in the South China Sea . After a port call at Singapore the " Coral Sea " headed to the Indian Ocean where she relieved the USS America ( CV - 66 ) at Gonzo Station , and operated with Royal Navy units in GonzoEx 2 - 81 ( 17 – 23 November ) . The " Coral Sea " battle group , under Rear Admiral Tom Brown , was involved in exercises with the Royal Navy under Rear Admiral Sandy Woodward – who operated with " HMS Glamorgan " as his flagship . During one exercise , Woodward was able to manoeuver " Glamorgan " into a position where he could have " sunk " the " Coral Sea " with Exocet missiles . The result of this exercise played a part in the belief of Admiral Woodward that the British should sink ARA General Belgrano because of the fear of a similar situation arising between that ship and the British Aircraft Carriers HMS Hermes and HMS Invincible during the Falklands War . Later , the " Coral Sea " participated in Exercise Bright Star 82 , an exercise involving the defense of Egypt and the Suez Canal ( 4 – 9 December ) . Relieved on 17 December 1981 by the USS Constellation ( CV - 64 ) , the " Coral Sea " departed Gonzo Station and called at Pattaya , Thailand after 98 consecutive days at sea . Like the visit to Subic Bay after 102 days at sea during the Iranian Hostage Crisis , Pattaya was a welcome sight for the crew , who availed themselves of the pleasures the city had to offer , as sailors are often stereotypically seen to do in literature and film . However , as with most port calls the " Coral Sea " made , no serious incidents were reported that might have damaged the ship ' s reputation . After departing Pattaya the ship called at Subic Bay and Hong Kong . The " Coral Sea " then operated in the Sea of Japan before making a port call at Sasebo , Japan . After departing Japan the " Coral Sea " made another port call at Subic Bay , then again at Pearl Harbor before steaming to California . The Coral Sea arrived at her home port of Alameda on 23 March 1982 . The ship then began upkeep , training and operations off the coast of California . In late July 1982 the " Coral Sea " served as a movie prop in filming of portions of the motion picture The Right Stuff . World Cruise , Deployments to the Mediterranean , Final Years . On 25 March 1983 , the " Coral Sea " left its homeport of Alameda , Calif . , for its new homeport of Norfolk , Va . The Navy sent the carrier on a six - month around - the - world cruise , with ports of call in five countries . The USS " Carl Vinson " replaced the " Coral Sea " at her homeport at what is now the former Alameda Naval Air Station . On 1 March 1984 , Carrier Air Wing 13 was established . The wing would make three deployments aboard " Coral Sea " from 1 October 1985 to 30 September 1989 . On 11 April 1985 , while on refresher training with its air wing in the Guantanamo Bay area , the " Coral Sea " collided with the Ecuadorian tanker ship " Napo " and subsequently underwent two months of repairs at Norfolk Naval Shipyard in Portsmouth , VA On 13 October 1985 , " Coral Sea " returned to the Mediterranean Sea for her first Sixth Fleet deployment since 1957 . Commanded by Captain Robert H . Ferguson , with CVW - 13 embarked , it was also the first deployment of the new F / A - 18 Hornet to the Mediterranean Sea . The Hornets were assigned to VFA - 131 , VFA - 132 , VMFA - 314 and VMFA - 323 on " Coral Sea " . On 2 January 1986 , EA - 6B Prowlers from VAQ - 135 reported aboard . The Squadron was called on a " No Notice Deployment " by The Joint Chiefs of Staff to augment CVW - 13 with Electronic Countermeasures / Jamming Support . On 24 March 1986 , Libyan Armed Forces ' units fired missiles at Sixth Fleet forces operating in the Gulf of Sidra after declaring international waters as their own . A missile ( originating from an SA - 5 missile site at Sirte ) attack on CV - 43 ' s aircraft ( Prowler / Hornet package ) conducting a " Blue Darter " fell short and dropped into the Mediterranean . F / A - 18 ' s from " Coral Sea " and " America " flew combat air patrols , protecting the carrier groups from Libyan aircraft . The Hornets were frequently called upon to intercept and challenge numerous MiG - 23 s , MiG - 25 s , Su - 22 s , and Mirages sent out by Libya to harass the fleet . On 5 April 1986 , in response to the US show of force , the La Belle Discothèque in the Federal Republic of Germany was bombed , resulting in the death of one U . S . serviceman and many injured On 15 April 1986 aircraft from the " Coral Sea " and " America " , as well as USAF F - 111F s from RAF Lakenheath in the U . K . , struck targets in Libya as part of " Operation El Dorado Canyon . " The Hornets went into action for the first time , flying several ship - to - shore air strikes against Libyan shore installations that were harassing the fleet . During this action , the Hornets from the " Coral Sea " attacked and destroyed the SA - 5 missile site at Sirte which had been " painting " US aircraft on its radars . This was the combat debut for the Hornet , and incidentally marked the first combat use of the AGM - 88A HARM anti - radiation missile . The Hornets attacked the SAM sites in bad weather and at wave top heights . All Hornets returned to the " Coral Sea " without mishap . " Coral Sea " continued deployments to the Mediterranean Sea and Indian Ocean area throughout the remainder of the 1980s and into the 1990s . In 1987 , she developed the " " Coral Sea " configuration " in which two attack squadrons on board used a shared maintenance program , helping to streamline aircraft maintenance . On 19 April 1989 , while operating in the Caribbean Sea , " Coral Sea " responded to a call for assistance from USS " Iowa " due to an explosion in the battleship ' s number two gun turret in which 47 crew members were killed . The explosive ordnance disposal team from Coral Sea removed volatile powder charges from the ship ' s 16 inch ( 407 mm ) guns . Coral Sea also dispatched a surgical team and medical supplies . Medevac and logistical support to Iowa was provided by Coral Sea ' s deployed helicopter squadron HS - 17 ( Neptune ' s Raiders ) flying the Sikorsky SH - 3H , along with VC - 8 flying the Sikorsky SH - 3G aircraft from Naval Station Roosevelt Roads , Puerto Rico . Decommissioning and Scrapping . " Coral Sea " was decommissioned 26 April 1990 and stricken from the Naval Vessel Register two days later . She was sold by the Defense Reutilization and Marketing Service ( DRMS ) for scrapping on 7 May 1993 to Seawitch Salvage of Baltimore , but scrapping was delayed by numerous financial , legal and environmental issues . Nearly 70 , 000 tons by the time she was struck , " Coral Sea " was the largest vessel ever scrapped up until that date and may be the last large American aircraft carrier ever to be scrapped ( newer environmental laws make it unprofitable for companies to scrap carriers within the United States , and it is illegal to sell capital ships for scrapping abroad ) . The company attempted to sell the hulk to China for scrapping , but the Navy blocked the sale in court . The scrapping continued off and on for several years until finally completed on 8 September 2000 . Two years after the scrapping started , a transcript of a supposed communication between a US naval vessel and a Canadian lighthouse began circulating widely in email . The " Coral Sea " was one of the ships most frequently identified . The urban legend continues to circulate , and the Navy ' s webpage on it points out that the " Coral Sea " could not have been sailing off the Canadian coast at the time as it was being scrapped . Pop Culture . In the rock mockumentary This Is Spinal Tap , director Rob Reiner portrayed himself as Martin DeBergi , and during several scenes , wore a USS Coral Sea ballcap . However the letters were altered as it read " USS Ooral Sea OV - 4B " . Pop radio presenter Emperor Rosko got his first opportunity to broadcast whilst in the US Navy where he presented a show on the " Coral Sea " , using the name Michael Prescott . In the second episode of The West Wing , a military operation is stated as being supported by " the F - 14 s off the " George Washington " and " Coral Sea " " . This episode aired more than nine years after the " Coral Sea " was decommissioned .