Marines with the 24th Marine Expeditionary Unit, an MV-22B Osprey with Marine Medium Tiltrotor Squadron 261 (Reinforced), 24th Marine Expeditionary Unit, prepares to take off from the flight deck of USS Iwo Jima to move personnel to shore and to other ships of the Iwo Jima Amphibious Ready Group, Dec. 1, 2012. The 24th Marine Expeditionary Unit is deployed with the Iwo Jima Amphibious Ready Group in the 6th Fleet area of responsibility serving as an expeditionary crisis response force capable of a variety of missions, from full-scale combat to evacuations and humanitarian assistance. Since deploying in March, they have supported a variety of missions in the U.S. Central, Africa and European Commands, assisted the Navy in safeguarding sea lanes, and conducted various bilateral and unilateral training events in several countries in the Middle East and Africa. (U.S. Marine Corps photo by Lance Cpl. Tucker S. Wolf/Released)