SURAGA BAY, Japan (Sept. 14, 2024) Forward-deployed amphibious assault ship USS America (LHA 6) passes Mount Fuji during Transport Exercise (TRANSPORTEX), Sept. 14. TRANSPORTEX is a humanitarian aid and disaster relief exercise, further enhancing interoperability between the U.S. and the Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force, enabling a combined rapid response force in the event of crisis or natural disaster. America, lead ship of the America Amphibious Ready Group, is operating in the U.S. 7th Fleet area of operations. U.S. 7th Fleet is the U.S. Navy’s largest forward-deployed numbered fleet, and routinely interacts and operates with allies and partners in preserving a free and open Indo-Pacific region. (U.S. Navy photo illustration by Mass Communication Specialist Seaman Kenneth Melseth)