Flight deck launching officer Pete Salvaggio gives the final launch signal as an F/A-18E Super Hornet from the “Argonauts” of Strike Fighter Squadron (VFA) 147 takes off from the flight deck aboard the Nimitz-class aircraft carrier USS John C. Stennis (CVN 74).

Stennis and Carrier Air Wing (CVW) 9 are on a scheduled six-month deployment to the western Pacific Ocean. (Photo by Mass Communication Specialist 3rd Class Walter M. Wayman)