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Joint Training Refines Humanitarian Aid, Disaster Relief Capabilities

A helicopter with a boat attached to its underside by cables flies over a body of water, with a cloudy sky and rainbow in the background.
Airborne Boat
A CH-53K King Stallion helicopter assigned to Marine Heavy Helicopter Squadron 461, Aircraft Group 29, 2nd Marine Aircraft Wing, transports a rigid-hull inflatable boat assigned to Army Charlie Company, 2nd Battalion, Special Warfare Training Group (Airborne), near Coast Guard Station Key West, Fla., July 28, 2025.
Credit: Marine Corps Cpl. Mya Seymour
VIRIN: 250728-M-WS036-1421P

Marines, soldiers, sailors and U.S. Customs and Border Protection personnel recently performed training to refine humanitarian assistance and disaster relief capabilities at Coast Guard Station Key West, Florida.

The training included Marines assigned to the 2nd Marine Aircraft Wing and 2nd Distribution Support Battalion and soldiers assigned to the Army Special Warfare Training Group (Airborne), along with Navy elements.

Four Marines stand in a small boat on a trailer on a grassy field, one holding a rod, as a helicopter descends toward the boat; another Marine stands on the ground, near the boat.
Waiting for a Ride
Marines assigned to 2nd Marine Aircraft Wing and 2nd Distribution Support Battalion perform an external lift with a CH-53K King Stallion helicopter as part of training to refine humanitarian aid and disaster relief capabilities at Coast Guard Station Key West, Fla., July 28, 2025.
Credit: Marine Corps Cpl. Mya Seymour
VIRIN: 250728-M-WS036-1163P
A Marine holds up a device to guide a cable descending from a hovering  aircraft toward a boat that the Marine is standing in.
Cable Guide
Marine Corps Lance Cpl. Julio Rivera, a logistics specialist assigned to 2nd Distribution Support Battalion, Combat Logistics Regiment 2, 2nd Marine Logistics Group, uses a static device to guide a cable from a CH-53K King Stallion helicopter toward a boat during training at Coast Guard Station Key West, Fla., July 29, 2025.
Credit: Cpl. Mya Seymour
VIRIN: 250729-M-WS036-1059P
A helicopter with a boat attached to its underside by cables flies over a body of water, with a cloudy sky and rainbow in the background.
Cloudy Conditions
A CH-53K King Stallion helicopter assigned to Marine Heavy Helicopter Squadron 461, Aircraft Group 29, 2nd Marine Aircraft Wing, transports a rigid-hull inflatable boat assigned to Army Charlie Company, 2nd Battalion, Special Warfare Training Group (Airborne), near Coast Guard Station Key West, Fla., July 28, 2025.
Credit: Marine Corps Cpl. Mya Seymour
VIRIN: 250728-M-WS036-1423P
It involved external lifts of rigid-hull inflatable boats by a CH-53K King Stallion assigned to Marine Heavy Helicopter Squadron 461 and helocasting, a technique during which troops jump from a low-flying helicopter into a body of water.

The exercises also enhanced the CH-53K King Stallion crew's ability to support distributed aviation operations in a joint environment.

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A boat is seen in rippling water from an open compartment of a hovering helicopter, its shadow reflected in the water, with a rainbow also visible.
Colorful View
A CH-53K King Stallion helicopter assigned to Marine Heavy Helicopter Squadron 461, Aircraft Group 29, 2nd Marine Aircraft Wing, inserts a rigid-hull inflatable boat assigned to Army Company C, 2nd Battalion, Special Warfare Training Group (Airborne), near Coast Guard Station Key West, Fla., July 29, 2025.
Credit: Marine Corps Cpl. Mya Seymour
VIRIN: 250729-M-WS036-1101P

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