Marines with Bravo Company, 1st Reconnaissance Battalion,

Marines with Bravo Company, 1st Reconnaissance Battalion, prepare to board the USS Freedom during on and off loading drills three miles off the coast of Del Mar Marine Corps Base Camp Pendleton, Calif., March 10, 2014. The Marines conducted a full day of rehearsals prior to the drills because it was their first time training on a littoral combat ship. The LCS gives Marines the opportunity to launch and recover reconnaissance teams from a greater distance out at sea. Gunnery Sgt. Mickey Eaton, assistant operations chief for the company, said the ability to use an LCS is the future for reconnaissance Marines.