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	USS Gunston Hall Hosts Distinguished Visitor Day with U.S. Marine Corps and U.S. Army in U.S. Southern Command
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        <h1 class="title">USS Gunston Hall Hosts Distinguished Visitor Day with U.S. Marine Corps and U.S. Army in U.S. Southern Command</h1>
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                 alt="The Amphibious dock landing ship USS Gunston Hall gets underway from Virginia Beach."
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            <div class="image-title">180618-N-HB733-0142</div>
            <div class="image-caption">VIRGINIA BEACH, Va. (JUNE 18, 2018) The Amphibious dock landing ship USS Gunston Hall (LSD 44) gets underway for SOUTHERN SEAS in Central and South America. SOUTHERN SEAS is an annual collaborative deployment in the USSOUTHCOM AOR where a task group will deploy to conduct a variety of exercises and multinational exchanges to enhance interoperability, increase regional stability, and build and maintain regional relationships with countries throughout the region through joint, multinational and interagency exchanges and cooperation. (Mass Communication Specialist 2nd Class Brianna K. Green/Released).</div>
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    <div><b>By Ensign Chelsea Dietlin</b> <span class="date">/ Published July 27, 2018</span></div>
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    <span style="color: #000000;">Caribbean Sea (NNS) (NNS) -- Senior ranking officers from the U.S. military and partner nations in the U.S. Southern Command area of responsibility embarked the Whidbey Island-Class Dock Landing Ship USS Gunston Hall (LSD-44) via CH-53E Super Stallion helicopter to observe the U.S. Navy's support of Special Purpose Marine Air-Ground Task Force - Southern Command (SPMAGTF-SC) in a humanitarian assistance/disaster relief (HA/DR) mission rehearsal, July 20. </span><br style="color: #000000;" />
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<span style="color: #000000;">The group spent roughly 90 minutes on board touring the ship, speaking with senior leadership and learning about U.S. Navy humanitarian assistance and disaster relief assets.</span><br style="color: #000000;" />
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<span style="color: #000000;">"The Southern Seas deployment is all about building relationships," said Capt. Brian Diebold, commodore, Destroyer Squadron (DESRON) 40. "Bringing our partners out here to see what the U.S. Navy does not only strengthens our existing ties in the region, but it opens new lines of communication."</span><br style="color: #000000;" />
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<span style="color: #000000;">The exercise helps refine the U.S. Navy's and SPMAGTF-SC's procedures as they prepare to respond to probable natural disasters in Latin America and the Caribbean. The rehearsal also provides an opportunity to work shoulder-to-shoulder with partner nations with the intent of eventually developing a multinational maritime task force responsible for rapid response to man-made and natural disasters in the region.</span><br style="color: #000000;" />
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<span style="color: #000000;">According to the ship's Commanding Officer, Cmdr. Fiona Halbritter, the Distinguished Visitor (DV) Embark Program places key leaders from all sectors of society aboard a U.S. military ship. While aboard they meet the ship's crewmembers and experience first-hand how the Navy is contributing to the security of the United States, and to the stability of the global community. </span><br style="color: #000000;" />
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<span style="color: #000000;">The ship's crewmembers spoke about the various components of shipboard operations and how the Navy and Marine Corps have demonstrated the viability and utility of jointly operated missions. </span><br style="color: #000000;" />
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<span style="color: #000000;">Southern Seas is a U.S. Southern Command-sponsored and U.S. Naval Forces Southern Command/U.S. 4th Fleet-conducted deployment focused on subject matter expert exchanges with partner nation militaries and security forces in the Caribbean, Central and South America. </span><br style="color: #000000;" />
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<span style="color: #000000;">For more news about Southern Seas 2018, visit </span><a href="http://www.navy.mil/local/cusns/" style="color: #607890;">www.navy.mil/local/cusns/</a><span style="color: #000000;">, on Facebook at </span><a href="http://www.facebook.com/NavySouthernSeas" style="color: #607890;">http://www.facebook.com/NavySouthernSeas</a><span style="color: #000000;">, or on Twitter at </span><a href="http://twitter.com/USNSouthernSeas" style="color: #607890;">http://twitter.com/USNSouthernSeas</a><span style="color: #000000;">. </span><br style="color: #000000;" />
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<span style="color: #000000;">For more information, visit </span><a href="http://www.navy.mil/" style="color: #607890;">www.navy.mil</a><span style="color: #000000;">, </span><a href="http://www.facebook.com/usnavy" style="color: #607890;">www.facebook.com/usnavy</a><span style="color: #000000;">, or </span><a href="http://www.twitter.com/usnavy" style="color: #607890;">www.twitter.com/usnavy</a><span style="color: #000000;">.</span><br style="color: #000000;" />
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<span style="color: #000000;">For more news from U.S. Naval Forces Southern Command & U.S. 4th Fleet, visit </span><a href="http://www.navy.mil/local/cusns/" style="color: #607890;">www.navy.mil/local/cusns/</a><span style="color: #000000;">.</span><br />
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