Image of the Day: Fire in the Hole!

Sailors assigned to the weapons department fire a 40-mm saluting battery aboard the amphibious assault ship USS America (LHA 6) in honor of Secretary of the Navy Ray Mabus’ arrival at America’s commissioning ceremony.


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America is the first ship of its class and the fourth to bear the name.

It replaces the Tarawa-class of amphibious assault ships as the next generation “big-deck” amphibious assault ship and is optimized for aviation and capable of supporting current and future aircraft such as the MV-22 Osprey and F-35B Joint Strike Fighter.

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Press Release, October 13, 2014; Image: U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 1st Class Vladimir Ramos