Sea Base USS Miguel Keith Hosts Air, Ground Combat Marines Deployed to Australia
Dzirhan Mahadzir
September 8, 2025 2:56 PM
U.S. Marines and Sailors with Fox Company, 2nd Battalion, 1st Marine Regiment, Marine Rotational Force-Darwin 25.3, board expeditionary sea base USS Miguel Keith (ESB-5) Aug. 27, 2025. US Marine Corps photo
The U.S. Marine Corps’ forward-deployed air-ground task force took to the high seas and boarded expeditionary sea base USS Miguel Keith (ESB-5), setting the stage for the unit to conduct future afloat operations.
For the first time, elements of Marine Rotational Force-Darwin (MRF-D) 25.3 Marine Air-Ground Task Force (MAGTF) boarded Miguel Keith on Aug. 27 and Aug. 29 for a stint at sea, according to photos released by the Pentagon. MRF-D is an annual six-month rotational deployment to enhance interoperability with the Australian Defense Force and provide a forward-postured crisis response force in the Indo-Pacific.
“By embarking aboard [Miguel Keith], MRF-D is now postured as a truly expeditionary force at sea, capable of responding from multiple axes across the First Island Chain to Australia,” the Marine Corps said in a recent news release. “Operating from an afloat platform provides the MAGTF with greater reach, endurance and flexibility, enabling rapid maneuver between archipelagic terrain and forward locations ashore. This positioning gives the MAGTF commander the ability to maneuver combat-credible forces where they are needed most, while presenting potential adversaries with a force that is distributed, unpredictable and integrated with the joint and combined formations.”
https://news.usni.org/2025/09/08/sea-base-uss-miguel-keith-hosts-air-ground-combat-marines-deployed-to-australia
