240430-N-YG401-2031

IVO NATUNA-BESAR ISLAND (April 30, 2024) U.S. Navy Aviation Boatswain’s Mate (Handling) 1st Class Michael Joseph, from Carrollton, Georgia, directs an F/A-18E Super Hornet, assigned to the “Flying Checkmates” of Strike Fighter Squadron (VFA) 211, on the flight deck aboard the Nimitz-class aircraft carrier USS Theodore Roosevelt (CVN 71), in the vicinity of Natuna-Besar Island, April 30. USINDOPACOM forces perform operations in and around critical sea passages and trade thoroughfares to deter threats that create regional instability and impinge on the free flow of goods, people, and ideas. (U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 2nd Class Andrew Benvie)