Roosevelt spent most of her active deployed career operating in the Mediterranean Sea as part of the United States Sixth Fleet.

Sponsor Mrs. John H. Towers, wife of the Deputy Commander-in-Chief, Pacific Fleet, christened the ship Coral Sea at the 29 April 1945 launching.

[1] During April and May, Roosevelt participated in Eighth Fleet maneuvers off the East Coast, the Navy's first major postwar training exercise.

Lieutenant Commander James Davidson, flying the McDonnell XFD-1 Phantom, made a series of successful take-offs and landings as Roosevelt lay off Cape Henry, Virginia.

[2] Jet trials continued in November, when Lt. Col. Marion E. Carl, USMC, made two catapult launches, four unassisted take-offs, and five arrested landings in a Lockheed P-80A.

Roosevelt, flying the flag of Rear Admiral John H. Cassady, Commander, Carrier Division 1, led the U.S. Navy force that arrived in Piraeus on 5 September 1946.

This was the first of twenty Mediterranean deployments Roosevelt would make, initiating an American aircraft carrier presence that would develop into the United States Sixth Fleet.

[1] Roosevelt returned to American waters and operated off the East Coast until July 1947, when her open bow was destroyed by a storm, which forced her to go to Norfolk Naval Shipyard for an extensive overhaul.

She received an enclosed "hurricane bow," one C-11-2 and two C-11-1 steam catapults, strengthened arresting gear, an enlarged bridge, a mirror landing system, and a 482-foot (147 m) angled flight deck.

In February 1957, Franklin D. Roosevelt conducted cold weather tests of catapults, aircraft, and the Regulus guided missile, in the Gulf of Maine.

Her assignments in the Mediterranean added NATO exercises to her normal schedule of major fleet operations, and found her entertaining a distinguished list of guests each year.

On 24 October 1958, Franklin D. Roosevelt supported USS Kleinsmith in the evacuation of 56 American citizens and three foreign nationals from Nicaragua, Cuba, as the Cuban Revolution came to a climax.

In late 1960, the Control Instrument Company installed the first production Fresnel Lens Optical Landing System (FLOLS) onboard Franklin D. Roosevelt.

[1] In January 1968, Italian actress Virna Lisi was invited by Franklin D. Roosevelt's crew to participate in the ship's 22nd birthday celebrations.

Roosevelt was therefore limited to an austere $46 million refit (SCB 103.68), enabling her to operate the Grumman A-6 Intruder and LTV A-7 Corsair II.

Roosevelt's twenty-first Sixth Fleet deployment was marked by indirect participation in the October 1973 Yom Kippur War, as she served as a transit "landing field" for aircraft being delivered to Israel.

VMA-231 was on board for this deployment, which demonstrated that VTOL aircraft could be integrated into fixed wing air operations, although limited fuel capacity required careful scheduling of their launch and land cycles.

Furthermore, Roosevelt used General Electric turbines, which gave persistent problems and reduced speed compared to the Westinghouse units used on the other ships.

After usable equipment was removed from Roosevelt at the Norfolk Naval Shipyard's Inactive Ships Facility, the carrier was towed to Kearny, New Jersey.