Photos from operation Iraqi Freedom.

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Caption: Above: Mail Call! It was a red letter day for 5,500 Sailors and aviators aboard the USS Abraham Lincoln when the massive aircraft carrier pulled into Pearl Harbor on April 26. Awaiting them on the pier were 62,000 pounds of mail, the equivalent of eight tractor-trailer loads of letters, packages, magazines ... and even a healthy assortment of bills. The mail had been accumulating at the Pearl Harbor Mail Center as the Lincoln steamed across the Pacific following its lengthy deployment in the Persian Gulf.

In the days leading up to the Lincoln's arrival, Sailors at the Pearl Harbor Mail Center had worked tirelessly ... but without complaint, knowing that their labors would be greatly appreciated by their shipmates aboard the carrier.

"I've been on three ships and I know what it feels like to get mail," said PC1 (SW) Tony Zarate, who works at the mail center.

Echoing Zarate's sentiments was fellow postal worker PC3 Marvin Harris. "Mail is very important," said Harris. "I've seen itfirsthand aboard ship. People will miss lunch, miss sleep, miss anything for a care package from home."

The Sailors were astounded by the volume of mail, all of which they were having to screen and x-ray. The 62,000 pounds of mail for the 5,500 works out to a whopping 11 pounds (11.2 to be precise) of mail per person!

"I've been in the military six years, and I've never seen this much mail," said Harris.