190124-M-PJ332-588 EAST CHINA SEA (Jan. 24, 2019) An aviation boatswain’s mate assigned to the amphibious assault ship USS Wasp (LHD 1) signals a pilot assigned to Marine Fighter Attack Squadron (VMFA) 121 during flight operations in the East China Sea, Jan. 24, 2019. Aviation boatswain’s mates wear distinctive, bright yellow shirts and use a variety of hand and arm signals to communicate with naval aviators and deck crew during flight operations. Marine Medium Tiltrotor Squadron 262 (Reinforced) and VMFA-121 comprise the Aviation Combat Element for the 31st Marine Expeditionary Unit (MEU). Its naval aviators fly the MV-22B Osprey tiltrotor aircraft and the F-35B Lightning II attack jet. 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)