Of note, this month is the 75th anniversary of Battle of the Philippine Sea that left three Japanese carriers and 600 irreplaceable pilots and crew of the IJN’s fleet air arm at the bottom of the Marianas.
That fact makes the below image of an American and Japanese flattop in joint operations recently something that Marc Mitscher/Ray Spruance and Jisaburō Ozawa/Kakuji Kakuta, the respective fleet commanders in that epic sea clash, would no doubt find poignant in a way.
190611-N-AB123-0002 SOUTH CHINA SEA (June 11, 2019) The Navy’s forward-deployed aircraft carrier USS Ronald Reagan (CVN 76) operates with the Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force (JMSDF) helicopter destroyer JS Izumo (DDH 183), June 11, 2019. The ships, along with the JMSDF destroyers JS Murasame (DD 101) and JS Akebono (DD 108) conducted communication checks, tactical maneuvering drills and liaison officer exchanges, June 10-12, designed to address common maritime security priorities and enhance interoperability at sea. (U.S. Navy photo courtesy of JMSDF/Released)