Amphibious assault ship USS Iwo Jima (LHD 7) pulled in to Civitavecchia, Italy for a scheduled port visit Dec. 30, 2014.
The visit provided the Sailors with the opportunity to build relations with the people of Italy, while affording them a chance to enjoy the remainder of the holiday season in port.
Capt. Dana Gordon, commanding officer, USS Iwo Jima, said:
We’ve recently completed an arduous work-up cycle and are ready to operate in the 5th and 6th Fleet areas of operation. Visiting Italy, our longtime, important NATO ally, gives our Sailors and Marines an once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to visit one of the greatest cities and regions in the world prior to conducting forward-deployed operations.
This is the first in a series of scheduled port visits for Iwo Jima during a routine deployment.
Iwo Jima, the flagship of the Iwo Jima Amphibious Ready Group (IWO ARG)/24th Marine Expeditionary Unit (24 MEU), is conducting naval operations in the U.S. 6th Fleet area of operations in support of maritime security operations and theater security cooperation efforts.
The IWO ARG/24 MEU is also comprised of embarked Marines from the 24th MEU, amphibious dock landing ship USS Fort McHenry (LSD 43) and amphibious transport dock ship USS New York (LPD 21).
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Press release, Image: US Navy