190417-N-DS741-0014 BARCELONA, Spain (April 17, 2019) Lt. j.g. Joshua Ehrhardt, from Reston, Va., assigned to the operations department aboard the Ticonderoga-class guided-missile cruiser USS Leyte Gulf (CG 55), greets Spanish Civil Guard Col. Jose Aledo Andreu, the Guardia Civil Deputy Chief in Catalonia, before a tour of the ship. Leyte Gulf is underway as part of the Abraham Lincoln Carrier Strike Group deployment in support of maritime security cooperation efforts in the U.S. 5th, 6th and 7th Fleet areas of responsibility. With Abraham Lincoln as the flagship, deployed strike group assets include staffs, ships and aircraft of Carrier Strike Group (CSG )12, Destroyer Squadron (DESRON) 2, Leyte Gulf and Carrier Air Wing (CVW) 7; as well as the Spanish navy Alvaro de Bazan-class frigate ESPS Mendez Nunez (F 104). (U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist Seaman Zachary Pearson/Released)