Background
In 1973 Libya claimed much of the Gulf of Sidra as its territorial waters and subsequently declared a "line of death", the crossing of which would invite a military response. Tensions between Libya and the U.S. were high after the U.S. accused Libya of building a chemical weapons plant near Rabta, causing the U.S. to deploy the USS John F. Kennedy (CV-67) near its coast. A second carrier group, based around the USS Theodore Roosevelt (CVN-71), was also being prepared to sail into the Gulf of Sidra.
Read more about this topic: Gulf Of Sidra Incident (1989)
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