The U.S. Navy

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The United States Navy is the second oldest branch of the military and is the largest branch if you encompass it with the marines. The U.S. Navy is also one of the most important branches of the military. Each other branch would practically be nothing without the Navy. The difference is that the navy and the Marines would be able to remain functional without the help of any of the other branches of the military. The reason they could remain functional without the other branch’s is that the navy and marines cover all aspects of warfare together thus making the navy the most flexible branch of the military (Navy.Mil).
First off, the U.S. Navy alone is the second largest branch of the military but that is not counting the marines who are coupled with the navy. The navy has 317,054 active duty personnel as of December 2013 and close to 104,650 reservists. It operates 341 ships and over 3,700 aircrafts ranging from Fighter jets such as the F-18, AWACS such as the E2-C Hawkeye, and helicopters such as the CH-46 Sea Knight. The U.S Navy operates 10 aircraft carriers actively; these carriers house over 5000 sailors for periods of 6-8 months. Overall the U.S. Navy is a force to be reckoned with no matter what country we face off with (Navy.Mil).
The Navy is very flexible having its own Special Forces team too. The U.S. Navy Seals are one of the most elite fighting forces in the world. They are able to operate in all environments, including sea, air, and land. Their training is some of the most advanced in the entire world taking some, thirty months of blood sweat and tears. Only around 25% of prospect Navy Seals will make it through the vigorous training (Luttrell). The Navy Seals normal missions consist usually of, recon, capture/kil...

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... U.S. blockading the straight would not allow any ships out to refuel or any ships in to go out. After many weeks of the Navy blockading the Bosporus straight the Russian economy would start to take some damage and Putin may be more willing to comply with our rules ().
In conclusion, without the Navy many of the essential missions that the Military is known for doing would not be possible. No other branch would be able to transport as many troops and weaponry or supplies to the battle zone. The Navy is also able to provide mobile air support, without Aircraft carriers if we wanted planes in the air we would have to construct airfields in the country we wanted to attack. They are also able to provide a nuclear safety net that no other branch could and finally they are the only branch able to provide humanitarian relief on a large scale for almost any disaster.

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