U.S. Marines assigned to Battalion Landing Team 1st Battalion, 5th Marines, 31st Marine Expeditionary Unit load AAV-P7/A1 Amphibious Assault Vehicle into the well-deck aboard the USS Ashland (LSD 48), a Whidbey Island-class dock landing ship, at White Beach, Okinawa, Japan, Jan. 29, 2016. The Marines loaded their AAVs onto the Ashland before heading to Thailand for exercise Cobra Gold 16. Cobra Gold is a Thai-U.S. co-sponsored exercise that is designed to advance regional security and ensure effective responses to regional crises by bringing together a robust multinational force from partner nations sharing common goals and security commitments in the Asia-Pacific region. (U.S. Marine Corps photo by Cpl. Darien J. Bjorndal, 31st Marine Expeditionary Unit/ Released)