Editing USS John C. Stennis (section)

===1998===
[[File:USS John C. Stennis (CVN-74) and HMS Illustrious (R 06) in the Persian Gulf on April 9, 1998.jpg|thumb|USS ''John C. Stennis'' (Left) and the British {{sclass|Invincible|aircraft carrier|0}} {{HMS|Illustrious|R06|6}} (right) operating together, April 1998.]]

On 26 February 1998 with [[Carrier Air Wing Seven]] embarked, ''John C. Stennis'' left Norfolk for her maiden deployment, transiting the [[Suez Canal]] on 7 March and arriving in the [[Persian Gulf]] on 11 March 1998.  The ship traveled {{cvt|8020|nmi|lk=in}} in 274 hours, an average speed of {{convert|29.4|kn}} to relieve {{USS|George Washington|CVN-73|6}} in conducting [[Operation Southern Watch]] missions. ''John C. Stennis'' departed the Persian Gulf on 19 July 1998 for her new home port of [[Naval Air Station North Island]] in [[San Diego]], California, arriving on 26 August 1998. In October 1998, she entered a six-month maintenance and upgrade period at North Island, returning to sea in April 1999. During the maintenance period, a [[jet blast deflector]] collapsed, severely injuring two sailors.