INDIAN OCEAN, (September 9, 2026) - U.S. Navy Culinary Specialist 3rd Class [ ], left, from South Carolina, braces Gunner’s Mate Seaman [ ], from Mississippi, as he connects cargo to an H225 Super Puma helicopter on the flight deck aboard Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyer USS Mustin (DDG 89) during a vertical replenishment-at-sea with Military Sealift Command Lewis and Clark-class dry cargo and ammunition ship USNS Cesar Chavez (T-AKE 14) while underway in the Indian Ocean, Sept. 10, 2026. Mustin 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 via DOW)