KOREA STRAIT (March 31, 2023) A Sailor aboard the amphibious assault ship USS Makin Island (LHD 8) salutes MH-60S pilots after a successful takeoff during flight operations in the Korean Strait, March 31, 2023. The 13th Marine Expeditionary Unit is embarked with the Makin Island Amphibious Ready Group, comprised of the Makin Island and the amphibious transport dock ships USS John P. Murtha (LPD 26) and USS Anchorage (LPD 23), and operating in the U.S. 7th Fleet area of operations. 7th Fleet is the U.S. Navy's largest forward-deployed numbered fleet, and routinely interacts and operates with Allies and partners in preserving a free and open Indo-Pacific region. (U.S. Marine Corps photo by Cpl. Carl Matthew Ruppert)