Texas native, U.S. Marine deploys to Australia

U.S. Marine Corps Lance Cpl. Justin Pierce, a motor transportation mechanic with Marine Rotational Force - Darwin, prepares vehicles for future MRF-D 20.2 exercises on Robertson Barracks, NT, Australia, July 2, 2020. A Dallas, TX. native, Pierce works on damaged vehicles so they are safe to be operated to transport gear and Marines to and from the field. (U.S. Marine Corps photo by Lance Cpl. Natalie Greenwood)
“It means everything to me to know that I am helping people do their job. I rely on the people providing and working on the equipment that I use to do my job to properly take care of it, and people rely on me to work on their equipment so they can do their job. I trust someone with my life every day, so it’s extremely important the motor transport operators trust me with theirs.”
While travel restrictions associated with COVID-19 delayed the deployment, more than 1,000 Marines will take part in this year's abbreviated rotation beginning June 2020. Deployments like MRF-D help cement the Australian-U.S. alliance as a vital element to regional security.