Naval Today said:After paying a scheduled port visit to Civitavecchia, Italy on December 30, USS Iwo Jima (LHD 7), US Navy’s amphibious assault ship, continued it deployment.
The vessel soon took on a southbound transit through the Strait of Messina to carry on with conducting naval operations in the U.S. 6th Fleet area of responsibility in support of U.S. national security interests in Europe.
Iwo Jima is the flagship of the Iwo Jima Amphibious Ready Group (IWO ARG)/24th Marine Expeditionary Unit (24 MEU), which is 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).
I started my build of the HUGE 1/350 scale USS Iwo Jima, LHD-7, today. It has over 1,5000 parts and I will be adding a lighting system to the Hanger Deck, the Well-deck, and the Island. Have also gotten a few after-market accessories to add to the kit. It will probably take me 3-4 months to build but will be a really neat, and extremely detailed model.
In other LHD news, while the Iwo Jima is in the med doing this, the Makin Island, LHD-8, and its ARG are also in the news on the other side of the globe, in the Pacific:
Naval Today said:The amphibious assault ship USS Makin Island (LHD 8), embarked with Amphibious Squadron Five and 11th Marine Expeditionary Unit (MEU) concluded a seven-day port visit in Duqm, Oman.
The visit provided Sailors and Marines the opportunity to experience the culture and hospitality of Oman after 115 days at sea.
During the port visit, Sailors and Marines participated in various festivities on the pier.
The visit also gave the crew an opportunity to complete many tasks including preservation of the ship’s hull and inport maintenance.
The Makin Island Amphibious Ready Group (ARG) and the embarked 11th Marine Expeditionary Unit (MEU) are deployed in support of maritime security operations and theater security cooperation efforts in the U.S. 5th Fleet area of operations.