reliability     of     established     and     upgraded     weapons systems and materials. 1971.  Navy  takes  delivery  of  the  AV-8  Harrier,  a fixed wing, vertical takeoff and landing (V/STOL) jet aircraft used for combat, and the EA-6B  Prowler,  the newest  carrier-based  sophisticated  electronic  warfare aircraft. The Navy also received the new CH-53A  Sea Stallion,   a   helicopter   devoted   exclusively   to   mine countermeasures. By towing specially designed magnetic and acoustical equipment, the CH-53 locates and activates enemy mines. 1972. The   Navy   receives   its   first   new   fighter aircraft in 14 years, the F-14 Tomcat, which replaces the aging  McDonnell  Douglas  F-4   Phantom  II.  The  war continued  in  Vietnam.  Navy  and  Marine  Corps  pilots were being rescued, over land and at sea, by Search and Rescue (SAR) helicopter crews. 1973.  The Vietnam cease-fire was announced, and U.S.   forces   start   to   withdraw.   The   Navy   lost   529 fixed-wing aircraft and 13 helicopters, and the Marine Corps lost 193 fixed-wing aircraft and 270 helicopters in   enemy   actions.   Operation Homecoming begins, which provides for the repatriation of prisoners of war (POWs). The   Blue  Angels   became  the  Navy  Flight Demonstration Squadron, located at Naval Air Station, Pensacola, Florida. 1974.  The Navy receives its new highly advanced, carrier-qualified,    jet    powered,    turbofan    S-3 Viking antisubmarine  warfare  aircraft  that  works  in  tandem with the SH-3 Sea King and SH-2 Seasprite helicopters in locating and tracking submarines. 1976. The Navy's last operational HU-16 Albatross seaplane,    S-2 Tracker antisubmarine    warfare,    and C-117  Douglas  DC-3  transport  aircraft  were  stricken from service. All arrived or departed NAS Pensacola, Florida,   and   can   be   found   at   the   Naval   Aviation Museum,  Pensacola,  Florida,  or  Davis  Monthan  Air Force Base, Arizona, the boneyard for obsolete military aircraft. 1979.  Navy carrier forces and air wings responded to    five    crisis    situations    around    the    world.    USS Constellation   to  a  conflict  between  North  and  South Yemen;  USS   Saipan   during  the  Nicaraguan  turmoil; USS  Nassau  involved  in  response  to  Russian  combat troops in Cuba; USS Kitty Hawk on alert in Korea; USS Kitty   Hawk    and   USS    Midway    conduct   contingence operations during the Iranian hostage crisis. 1980s As    Naval    Aviation    approaches    its    "Diamond Anniversary" decade, war erupts between Iraq and Iran as U.S. carrier forces maintain their deployment cycles in  support  of  the  Iranian  crisis  in  the  Arabian  Sea, provide humanitarian support to Cuban refugees in the Caribbean,   and   defense   capabilities   for   the   Panama Canal.  An  increase  in  new  technology  and  research produce  new  versions  of  the  F/A-18   Hornet,  SH-60 Seahawk, OV-10  Bronco, MH-53  Sea Stallion, and the V-22  Osprey, a fixed-wing, tilt-rotor aircraft. 1981. The    first    flight    of    the    Space    Shuttle (Columbia),   with   an   all-Navy   crew,   launched   from Cape Canaveral, Florida. 1983. Combat     amphibious     assault     operations commence on the island of Grenada. Navy and Marine Corps air support was provided by Carrier Air Wing Six (CVW-6) aboard USS  Independence. 1986. Naval aviation celebrates its 75th anniversary while  U.S.  carrier  forces  attack  Libyan  targets  with HARM,    Harpoon,    and    Shrike    missiles.    The    F-14 Tomcat,    F-18 Hornet,    and    A-6 Intruder aircraft conducted  low-level  bombing  and  fighter  support  for the operation. 1988. Helicopter Squadron (HCS-5) was established. The first of its kind, with a primary mission of combat search and rescue (strike rescue) and special warfare support. It operates the HH-60  Seahawk. 1990s This decade begins with a "new world" order. The collapse of the Soviet Union left the United States as the world's only superpower. In the Middle East, Iraq invades  Kuwait,  a  massive  armada  of  U.S.  Naval  and Allied  Forces  converge  on  the  region  in  support  of "Operations Desert Shield and Desert Storm." 1991.   The  Navy  launches  massive  aerial  attacks with Tomahawk cruise    missiles    at    predetermined targets in Iraq and Kuwait. U.S. Naval, Marine Corps, Air Force, and Allied aircraft of all types made a quick and  decisive  blow  to  the  Iraqi  ground  and  air  forces, resulting in the liberation of Kuwait and the end of the Persian Gulf War. 1992.  The  USS  Lexington,  the  Navy's  unsinkable "Blue  Ghost"  of  World  War  II,  was  decommissioned and  turned  into  a  memorial  museum  ship.  The  Navy takes delivery of its newest training aircraft, the T-45 Goshawk, which will replace the aging T-2 Buckeye and TA-4  Skyhawk. 1-5