please note the scale in the lower left.
i'm sure we had a number of US assets within 500 miles of benghazi that could have easily arrived before the 7 hour standoff was over
i've not seen any report where the stennis carrier group was at the time... nor the location of the closest base under control of Gen. Hamm.
Reportedly, a squadron of F-18s was armed and ready. There were also reports that the Rapid Response Force based in Germany had been immediately sent to Sigonella and they were on the runway, rotors turning, ready to go.
But there was never any "Go" order.
The carrier group normally in the Mediterranean was on the other side of Suez, where they had been supporting operations in the Arabian Sea. As I recall, the group may have been in the Red Sea at the time, transiting back to the Med.