190123-M-PJ332-026 PHILIPPINE SEA (Jan. 23, 2019) An MV-22B Osprey tiltrotor aircraft belonging to Marine Medium Tiltrotor Squadron 262 (Reinforced) approaches the amphibious assault ship USS Wasp (LHD 1) during flight operations underway in the Philippine Sea, Jan. 23, 2019. Naval aviators with VMM-262 (Rein.), the tiltrotor component of the 31st Marine Expeditionary Unit's Aviation Combat Element, perform a wide variety of aviation missions for the 31st MEU, including troop transport, heavy and medium lift, fixed-wing attack support and aerial reconnaissance. The 31st MEU, the Marine Corps’ only continuously forward-deployed MEU partnering with the Wasp Amphibious Ready Group, provides a flexible and lethal force ready to perform a wide range of military operations as the premier crisis response force in the Indo-Pacific region. (U.S. Marine Corps photo by Gunnery Sgt. T. T. Parish/Released)