U.S. Navy amphibious ships assembled around the aviation-centric USS America amphibious assault ship started the composite training unit exercise (COMPTUEX) in preparation for their upcoming deployment.
The America Amphibious Ready Group (ARG), consisting of the amphibious assault ship USS America (LHA 6), amphibious transport dock ship USS San Diego (LPD 22) and amphibious dock landing ship USS Pearl Harbor (LSD 52) started the drill on May 1, off the Southern California coast.
Throughout COMPTUEX, the ARG, along with the embarked 15th Marine Expeditionary Unit (MEU), will complete simulated scenarios such as surface and subsurface threats as well as simulated straits transits.
COMPTUEX is designed to forge the ships of the America ARG into a fully-functioning combat force. This enables the Navy-Marine Corps team to shape actions across the range of military operations to resolve conflict, conduct humanitarian assistance or combat the enemy in remote, austere environments that would otherwise be inaccessible.
During the training exercise the ARG will be evaluated and tested on their reaction to real-world scenarios and their performance as an integrated unit.