Marines of Amphibious Assault Vehicle platoon, Combat Assault Company, 3rd Marine Regiment, Marine Corps Base Hawaii - Kane'ohe Bay, splashed in off the sands of Pyramid Rock beach July 12, 2012, during Rim of the Pacific Exercise 2012 to meet the USS Essex (LHD-2) off shore. Twenty-two nations, more than 40 ships and submarines, more than 200 aircraft and 25,000 personnel are participating in RIMPAC exercise from Jun. 29 to Aug. 3, in and around the Hawaiian Islands. The world's largest international maritime exercise, RIMPAC provides a unique training opportunity that helps participants foster and sustain the cooperative relationships that are critical to ensuring the safety of sea lanes and security on the world's oceans. RIMPAC 2012 is the 23rd exercise in the series that began in 1971.