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Ordnance Marines with Marine Medium Tiltrotor Squadron 265 (Reinforced), 31st Marine Expeditionary Unit, load an AIM- 9X Sidewinder missile onto an F-35B Lightning II fighter aircraft prior to a defensive combat air patrol rehearsal aboard the amphibious assault ship USS Wasp (LHD 1), Pacific Ocean, August 7, 2019. Wasp, flagship of the Wasp Amphibious Ready Group, with embarked 31st MEU, is operating in the Indo-Pacific region to enhance interoperability with partners and serve as ready-response force for any type of contingency, while simultaneously providing a flexible and lethal crisis response force ready to perform a wide range of military operations. (Official U.S Marine Corps photo by Cpl. Luis Velez) - Ordnance Marines with Marine Medium Tiltrotor Squadron 265 (Reinforced), 31st Marine Expeditionary Unit, load an AIM- 9X Sidewinder missile onto an F-35B Lightning II fighter aircraft prior to a defensive combat air patrol rehearsal aboard the amphibious assault ship USS Wasp (LHD 1), Pacific Ocean, August 7, 2019. Wasp, flagship of the Wasp Amphibious Ready Group, with embarked 31st MEU, is operating in the Indo-Pacific region to enhance interoperability with partners and serve as ready-response force for any type of contingency, while simultaneously providing a flexible and lethal crisis response force ready to perform a wide range of military operations. (Official U.S Marine Corps photo by Cpl. Luis Velez)

Lance Cpl. Celestin Wikenson, an airframer with Marine Medium Tiltrotor Squadron 262 (Reinforced), maintains the skin of a MV-22B Osprey helicopter Marine Corps Air Station Futenma, Okinawa, Japan, March 28, 2019. - Lance Cpl. Celestin Wikenson, an airframer with Marine Medium Tiltrotor Squadron 262 (Reinforced), maintains the skin of a MV-22B Osprey helicopter Marine Corps Air Station Futenma, Okinawa, Japan, March 28, 2019. Wikenson, a native of Newark, New Jersey, graduated from University High School in June 2013 before enlisting in July 2017. Wikenson joined the Marine Corps because he wasn’t content with the civilian life style and wanted to achieve more. Since Wikenson has been in he has learned to work as a unit and to take responsibility for his own actions. (U.S. Marine Corps photo by Lance Cpl. Cameron E. Parks/Released)

Cpl. Joseph Roche, a joint fires observer with Alpha Company, Battalion Landing Team, 1st Battalion, 4th Marines, oversees service members with the Japan Ground Self-Defense Force conducting call-for-fire drills in the Supporting Arms Virtual Trainer on Camp Hansen, Okinawa, Japan, April 9, 2019. - Cpl. Joseph Roche, a joint fires observer with Alpha Company, Battalion Landing Team, 1st Battalion, 4th Marines, oversees service members with the Japan Ground Self-Defense Force conducting call-for-fire drills in the Supporting Arms Virtual Trainer on Camp Hansen, Okinawa, Japan, April 9, 2019. Roche, a native of Franklin, Pennsylvania, graduated from John F. Kennedy High School in May 2011 before enlisting in May 2017. This observation and exchange provided opportunities for the 31st MEU Marines, and JGSDF personnel, to increasing understanding and interoperability. BLT 1/4 is the Ground Combat Element of the 31st MEU. The 31st MEU, the Marine Corps’ only continuously forward-deployed MEU, provides a flexible and lethal force ready to perform a wide range of military operations as the premier crisis response force in the Indo-Pacific region. (Official Marine Corps photo by Lance Cpl. Harrison C. Rakhshani/Released)

Lance Cpl. Tayvion Smith, a legal clerk with the 31st Marine Expeditionary Unit, reads a book at Camp Hansen, Okinawa, Japan, April 11, 2019. - Lance Cpl. Tayvion Smith, a legal clerk with the 31st Marine Expeditionary Unit, reads a book at Camp Hansen, Okinawa, Japan, April 11, 2019. Smith, a native of Columbus, Ohio, enlisted in November of 2017 after graduating from Eastmoore Academy. He joined for the camaraderie and to continue his education. The 31st MEU, the Marine Corps’ only continuously forward-deployed MEU, provides a flexible force ready to perform a wide range of military operations as the premier crisis response force in the Indo-Pacific region. (U.S. Marine Corps photo be Lance Cpl. Cameron Parks/Released)

Cpl. John Stone, a meteorology and oceanography analyst forecaster with the 31st Marine Expeditionary Unit, briefs the daily forecast at Camp Hansen, Okinawa, Japan, April 16, 2019. - Cpl. John Stone, a meteorology and oceanography analyst forecaster with the 31st Marine Expeditionary Unit, briefs the daily forecast at Camp Hansen, Okinawa, Japan, April 16, 2019. The 31st MEU, the Marine Corps’ only continuously forward-deployed MEU, provides a flexible force ready to perform a wide range of military operations as the premier crisis response force in the Indo-Pacific region. (U.S. Marine Corps photo by Lance Cpl. Kyle P. Bunyi/Released)

Lance Cpl. Johnjacob R. Carillo, a motor transportation mechanic with the Command Element of the 31st Marine Expeditionary Unit, works on the engine of a Humvee at Camp Hansen, Okinawa, Japan, Aprih 18, 2019. - Lance Cpl. Johnjacob R. Carillo, a motor transportation mechanic with the Command Element of the 31st Marine Expeditionary Unit, works on the engine of a Humvee at Camp Hansen, Okinawa, Japan, Aprih 18, 2019. Mechanics like Carillo play a major role in ensuring the 31st MEU is prepared for upcoming deployments. Carillo a native of Tuleta, Texas, graduated Three Rivers High School in May 2017 before enlisting in July later that year. The 31st MEU, the Marine Corps only continuously forward-deployed MEU, provides a flexible and lethal force ready to perform a wide range of military operations as the premier crisis response force in the Indo-Pacific region. (U.S. Marine Corps photo by Lance Cpl. Tanner D. Lambert)

Lance Cpl. Ryan C. Motley, an S-3 fires specialist with the 31st Marine Expeditionary Unit, inputs information into the Marine Corps Training Information Management System at Camp Hansen, Okinawa, Japan, April 18, 2019. - Lance Cpl. Ryan C. Motley, an S-3 fires specialist with the 31st Marine Expeditionary Unit, inputs information into the Marine Corps Training Information Management System at Camp Hansen, Okinawa, Japan, April 18, 2019. Motley a native of Cocoa Beach, Fla., graduated from Cocoa Beach Junior Senior High School in May of 2014 before enlisting in August of 2017. The 31st MEU, the Marine Corps’ only continually forward-deployed MEU, provides a flexible and lethal force ready to perform a wide range of military operations as the premier crisis response force in the Indo-Pacific region. (U.S. Marine Corps photos by Lance Cpl. Cameron Parks/ Released)

Sgt. Jimmy Siackasone, a defense cyberspace operator with S-6, Command Element, 31st Marine Expeditionary Unit, stands outside the 31st MEU S-6 compound on Camp Hansen, Okinawa, Japan, April 18, 2019. - Sgt. Jimmy Siackasone, a defense cyberspace operator with S-6, Command Element, 31st Marine Expeditionary Unit, stands outside the 31st MEU S-6 compound on Camp Hansen, Okinawa, Japan, April 18, 2019. Siackasone, a native of Lexington, South Carolina, graduated from Lexington High School in June 2010 before enlisting in March 2011. The 31st MEU, the Marine Corps’ only continuously forward-deployed MEU, provides a flexible and lethal force ready to perform a wide range of military operations as the premier crisis response force in the Indo-Pacific region. (Official Marine Corps photo by Lance Cpl. Harrison C. Rakhshani/Released)

The 31st Marine Expeditionary Unit, the Marine Corps’ only continuously forward-deployed MEU partnering with the Wasp Amphibious Ready Group, provides a flexible and lethal force ready to perform a wide range of military operations as the premier crisis response force in the Indo-Pacific region. (U.S. Marine Corps photo by Maj. Jesse Peppers/ Released) - An F-35B Lightning II with the F-35B detachment of Medium Marine Tiltrotor Squadron 262 (Reinforced) releases Guided Bomb Units on-target above the Pacific Ocean, Feb. 3, 2019. Naval aviators with the detachment fly the Marine Corps' newest, most advanced multi-role fighter, the F-35B. The 31st Marine Expeditionary Unit, the Marine Corps’ only continuously forward-deployed MEU partnering with the Wasp Amphibious Ready Group, provides a flexible and lethal force ready to perform a wide range of military operations as the premier crisis response force in the Indo-Pacific region. (U.S. Marine Corps photo by Maj. Jesse Peppers/ Released)

Marines with Alpha Company, Battalion Landing Team, 1st Battalion, 4th Marines, ride toward the shore aboard Combat Rubber Raiding Craft during a small boat raid as part of the 31st Marine Expeditionary Unit’s MEU Exercise, Kin Blue Beach, Okinawa, Japan, Dec. 12, 2018. - Marines with Alpha Company, Battalion Landing Team, 1st Battalion, 4th Marines, ride toward the shore aboard Combat Rubber Raiding Craft during a small boat raid as part of the 31st Marine Expeditionary Unit’s MEU Exercise, Kin Blue Beach, Okinawa, Japan, Dec. 12, 2018. BLT 1/4 is the Ground Combat Element for the 31st MEU. The 31st MEU, the Marine Corps’ only continuously forward-deployed MEU, provides a flexible and lethal force ready to perform a wide range of military operations as the premier crisis response force in the Indo-Pacific region. (U.S. Marine Corps photo by Lance Cpl. Dylan Hess/Released)