180924-N-ZS023-1003 STRAIT OF HORMUZ (Sept. 24, 2018) Ensign Spencer Bird, left, and junior officers stand watch in the pilot house as the Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyer USS The Sullivans (DDG 68) conducts a routine transit through the Strait of Hormuz. The Sullivans is deployed to the U.S. 5th Fleet area of operations in support of naval operations to ensure maritime stability and security in the Central Region, connecting the Mediterranean and the Pacific through the western Indian Ocean and three strategic choke points. (U.S. Navy photo by Lt. Daphne White/Released)