It’s a gator it’s designed to get in fairly shallow water to launch Marines from its wet deep V bay. The entire ship is easier to burn than a normal carrier because it can’t be completely sealed off due to the design. It has a large open area that extends up from water line in the rear to hangar deck (01 level) and can’t be closed off.
Good post. You are correct.
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I deployed with the 13th MEU on the BHR, know the ship well.
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Much of the time it was pretty rough duty, between missions and a typhoon.