THE BLUE ANGELS AND USS HALYBURTON ESCORT THE USS CONSTITUTION, 1997-07-22 (photo)

The USS Constitution (C) sails under her own power as she is escorted by the USS Halyburton (L) and the Navy's precision flying team Blue Angels in the Atlantic Ocean off Marblehead, Massachusetts, July 21. The Constitution, the oldest commissioned warship still afloat in the world, sailed on a 65-minute, 3.5 nautical mile cruise, sailing freely under her own power for the first time in 116 years. The Constitution celebrated the 200th anniversary of her launch with the historic free sail. The 44-gun frigate earned the nickname "Old Ironsides" when cannon balls fired from the British warship HMS Guerriere bounced off its thick oak hull during an August 1812 confrontation in the Atlantic, the first time America's tiny navy had beaten a British ship in battle. IRONSIDES