The Navy is expected to play an increasing role in coming decades, given the U.S.'s Pacific pivot and emerging reluctance to deploy ground troops. The Navy gives the U.S. the ability to project power around the globe even without frequent ground deployments, and is already an indispensable aspect of American policy and national security.
"You're going to see a much greater emphasis on using sea-based forces to produce an effect," Admiral Gary Roughead told Reuters. "You're seeing it in the Mediterranean, with Syria, and you're seeing it in the Pacific and the Middle East."
To celebrate America's Navy, we've pulled out some of the coolest photos from the archives.