SOUTH CHINA SEA (Aug. 9, 2023) The Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyer USS Ralph Johnson (DDG 114) conducts a live-fire exercise in support of Large Scale Exercise 2023 in the South China Sea, Aug. 9. LSE 2023 integrates participants from six maritime component commands and seven numbered fleets across 22 time zones and is intended to refine how we synchronize maritime operations on a global scale. Ralph Johnson is assigned to Commander, Task Force 71/Destroyer Squadron (DESRON) 15, the Navy’s largest forward-deployed DESRON and the U.S. 7th Fleet’s principal surface force. (U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 1st Class Jamaal Liddell)