PACIFIC OCEAN (Oct. 3, 2021) U.S. Navy Sailors direct a Marine Corps F-35B Lightning II aircraft assigned to Marine Fighter Attack Squadron (VMFA) 242 aboard the Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force helicopter destroyer JS Izumo (DDH-183) off the coast of Japan, Oct. 3, 2021. Marines and Sailors embarked aboard the amphibious assault ship USS America (LHA 6) embarked aboard Izumo to support the first ever F-35B Lightning II operations aboard a Japanese vessel. The U.S. and Japan continue to work closely together to broaden their operational capabilities, support the Treaty of Mutual Cooperation and Security and maintain a free and open Indo-Pacific. (U.S. Marine Corps photo by Lance Cpl. Tyler Harmon)