SAN DIEGO (March 18, 2021) The Whidbey Island-class amphibious dock landing ship USS Rushmore (LSD 47) is led by amphibious warfare warfare tactics instructors Lt. Cmdr. Tammi Ballinger, left, executive officer, and Cmdr. Emily Royse, commanding officer, both graduates of the same October 2017 Naval Surface and Mine Warfighting Development Center (SMWDC) warfare tactics instructors course. Ballinger relieved Royse as the executive officer prior to Royse’s fleet-up, becoming the first female warfare tactics instructor commanding officer. SMWDC accepts applications from top-talented junior surface warfare officers to become expert warfare tacticians in one of four warfare areas – Amphibious Warfare, Integrated Air and Missile Defense, Mine Warfare, or Anti-Submarine Warfare/Surface Warfare. (U.S. Navy photo by Ensign Heather Brown)