"Gridley" returned to San Diego in October 1992 and was overhauled at the National Steel and Shipbuilding Company from January through April 1993. During that time, the ship was back fitted to accommodate the new SM-2ER block III missile. The modification gave the ship the capability to defeat the sea-skimming cruise missiles which have proliferated worldwide in the 1990s. In July 1993, "Gridley" fired several of the new missiles on the Pacific Missile Test Center range, scoring three successful hits. That same month, the ship rendezvoused with USS "Constellation" in Acapulco, Mexico, escorting her back to San Diego, after the carrier's three-year Service Life Extension Program overhaul at the Philadelphia Naval Shipyard.