RIMPAC 2024: USNS Pecos, HMAS Sydney, USS Curtis Wilbur, HMNZS Aotearoa depart for Force Integration Phase

The Henry J. Kaiser-class fleet replenishment oiler USNS Pecos (T-AO 197), the Royal Australian Navy Hobart-class guided-missile destroyer HMAS Sydney (DDG 42), the Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyer USS Curtis Wilbur (DDG 54), and the Royal New Zealand Navy Polar-class auxiliary ship HMNZS Aotearoa (A11) depart Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam, Hawaii, to begin the Force Integration phase of Rim of the Pacific (RIMPAC) 2024, July 8. Twenty-nine nations, 40 surface ships, three submarines, 14 national land forces, more than 150 aircraft and 25,000 personnel are participating in RIMPAC in and around the Hawaiian Islands, June 27 to Aug. 1. The world’s largest international maritime exercise, RIMPAC provides a unique training opportunity while fostering and sustaining cooperative relationships among participants critical to ensuring the safety of sea lanes and security on the world’s oceans. RIMPAC 2024 is the 29th exercise in the series that began in 1971. (U.S. Navy video by Mass Communication Specialist 2nd Class Preston Cash)