It was early in the deployment, with an offload in U.S. Seventh Fleet just beginning, when it came to a sudden halt. It could not happen at a worse time. The crew aboard the dock landing ship USS Harpers Ferry was getting ready to launch a utility landing craft (LCU), but a pair of assault amphibious vehicles (AAVs) with the 13th Marine Expeditionary Unit (MEU) in the ship's well deck would not start. They were "deadlined" and could not be moved, so they blocked the LCU from leaving the ship. The repair parts the Marines needed to fix the AAVs were not at hand. They were stored on the amphibious assault ship USS Boxer.
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