SOUTH CHINA SEA (June 10, 2024) An F/A-18F Super Hornet assigned to Strike Fighter Squadron (VFA) 25 launches off the flight deck of the Nimitz-class aircraft carrier USS Theodore Roosevelt (CVN 71) in the South China Sea, June 10, 2024. U.S. Indo-Pacific Command forces perform operations in and around critical sea passages and trade thoroughfares to deter threats that create regional instability and impinge on the free flow of goods, people, and ideas. (U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist Seaman Apprentice Aaron Haro Gonzalez)