USS Nimitz (CVN-68) 1986-87 Cruise Sweatshirt

USS Nimitz (CVN-68) deployed on her 1986-87 cruise to the Western Pacific and Indian Ocean as American forces maintained an intensive forward presence during the later years of the Cold War. This period saw Nimitz operating in strategically vital waters at a time of continued tension with Soviet naval forces and growing instability in the Persian Gulf region, where the Iran-Iraq War was disrupting global shipping. The carrier and her battle group provided the flexible deterrence capability that only a nuclear-powered supercarrier could offer. This sweatshirt commemorates the 1986-87 cruise of USS Nimitz, honoring the Sailors and aviators who kept the watch during this critical era in American naval history.