From 4 October, Abraham Lincoln formed CTG 24.8 in company with USS Doyle (FFG-39); 6 October transit with USS Pawcatuck (AO-108) and Doyle in company. On 5 November 1990, as Abraham Lincoln was anchored in Valparaíso, Frente Patriótico Manuel Rodríguez guerrillas detonated a bomb inside the restaurant Max und Moritz, in the seaside resort of Viña del Mar, wounding three of her sailors.
Abraham Lincoln’s maiden Western Pacific deployment came unexpectedly on 28 May 1991 in response to Operation Desert Shield/Desert Storm. The ship had the staffs of Commander, Carrier Group Three, Rear Admiral Timothy W. Wright, and Destroyer Squadron 9 embarked, as well as Carrier Air Wing Eleven. She was accompanied by a seven-ship battle group.
