USS Benfold conducts small boat ops in Tokyo Bay

U.S. Navy Boatswain’s Mate 3rd Class Camren Hall, from Maryland, climbs down a pilot’s ladder into a rigid-hull inflatable boat during small boat operations on the flight deck aboard Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyer USS Benfold (DDG 65) during routine operations in Tokyo Bay, Japan, Aug. 20, 2026. Benfold is forward deployed and assigned to Destroyer Squadron (DESRON) 15, the Navy’s largest DESRON and U.S. 7th Fleet’s principal surface force. U.S. 7th Fleet, the Navy’s largest forward-deployed numbered fleet, routinely interacts and operates with allies and partners in preserving a free and open Indo-Pacific. (U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 2nd Class Oscar Diaz)