The amphibious dock landing ship USS Pearl Harbor (LSD 52) and the embarked Marines of the 15th Marine Expeditionary Unit (MEU) departed Jebel Ali, United Arab Emirates, Oct. 15, after completing a mid-deployment voyage repair (MDVR).

Mid-deployment maintenance availabilities are commonly scheduled to allow U.S. naval vessels to complete repairs and maintenance that would normally take place in homeport, allowing the ship to remain fully mission capable throughout the remainder of the deployment.

"We were able to complete some routine repairs and maintenance, and our Sailors and Marines were able to enjoy liberty in a culturally diverse setting that many of them had never seen before," said Cmdr. Benjamin Miller, Pearl Harbor's executive officer. "This is a place that is filled with history all the way back to the earliest days of mankind and that is growing at an amazing rate into one of the world's top destinations for tourism and industry alike."

Between work days, Pearl Harbor's Sailors and embarked Marines took advantage of the time ashore to participate in Morale, Welfare and Recreation (MWR) tours, visit the local markets, and relax after spending the past month at sea.

"I went on the night safari through [the Morale, Welfare and Recreation program]," said Marine Cpl. Connor Schroeder, assigned to the 15th MEU embarked on Pearl Harbor. "It was nice and refreshing to be able to get off the ship."

Pearl Harbor is part of the America Amphibious Ready Group (ARG) and, with 15th MEU, is in the U.S. 5th Fleet area of operations in support of maritime security operations to reassure allies and partners, and preserve the freedom of navigation and the free flow of commerce in the region.

The ARG and 15th MEU provide senior U.S. military leadership and partners with a flexible force which can rapidly respond to contingencies and crises within a region. With ships, aircraft, troops and logistical equipment, the ARG/MEU is a self-contained and self-sustained task force capable of conducting a wide range of military operations including humanitarian assistance and disaster relief.

For more information on Pearl Harbor, visit http://www.public.navy.mil/surfor/LSD52 and http://www.facebook.com/USSPEARLHARBOR.

For more information on Commander, Amphibious Squadron 3, visit
http://www.public.navy.mil/surfor/cpr3/Pages/default.aspx and http://www.facebook.com/PHIBRON3/

For more information on 15th MEU, visit http://www.facebook.com/15thmarineexpeditionaryunit, http://www.twitter.com/15thmeuofficial and http://www.dvidshub.net/unit/15thmarineexpeditionaryunit.

For more information, visit http://www.navy.mil, http://www.facebook.com/usnavy, or http://www.twitter.com/usnavy.

For more news from USS America (LHA 6), visit http://www.navy.mil/.