Expeditionary Strike Group SEVEN/Task Force 76 (Amphibious Force U.S. SEVENTH Fleet) is a United States Navy task force. It is part of the United States Seventh Fleet and the USN's only permanently forward-deployed expeditionary strike group. It is based at the White Beach Naval Facility at the end of the Katsuren Peninsula in Uruma City, Okinawa, Japan. CTF 76 conducts operations throughout the U.S. Seventh Fleet area of operations, which includes the Western Pacific Ocean and the Indian Ocean. History 10 January 1943 – Southwest Pacific Amphibious Forces – later called the Seventh Amphibious Force is formed in Brisbane, Australia. Participated in Operation Chronicle, the landing at Lae, the landing at Scarlet Beach at Finschhafen, Battle of Arawe and Battle of Cape Gloucester on the island of New Britain, 1944 – Participated in the landing at Hollandia, landing at Aitape, landing at Saidor and Admiralty Islands campaign. 1950 – Supported UN during Korean War by stationing ships at Inchon and Wonsan. 1954 – CTF 76 participated in Operation Passage to Freedom, the largest operation of its kind in history. The operation evacuated 310,000 people from communist-controlled North Vietnam to South Vietnam and carried 58,000 tons of cargo and humanitarian aid. 1965 – Participated in amphibious landings, assaults and demonstrations off the eastern coast of the Republic of Vietnam. Also cleared mines off the Vietnamese coast toward the end of the Vietnam War. Amphibious Ready Group Alpha, and its U.S. Marine contingent "Special Landing Force Alpha" or SLF-A (often referred to as the "Sluff", during the Vietnam era) formed Task Group 76.4. TG 76.4 consisted of various support vessels, such as Landing Platform, Helicopter (LPHs) such as the , or . Other vessels included LSTs (Landing Ship Tank) or LSD (Landing Ship Dock) supported a reinforced Marine Corps battalion referred to as a Battalion Landing Team (BLT). The Marine elements of the Group were referred to as Special Landing Force Alpha which itself consisted of the BLT and a Marine Helicopter Squadron. The ARG also included an Amphibious Group Command Ship (AGC) or the Amphibious Communication and Command Ship (LCC) which carried the Commander Amphibious Forces, Pacific Fleet and command and communications support facilities. Three AGCs and one LCC rotated to the Western Pacific and all four were involved in the amphibious landings by the LCC/AGC/SLF in Vietnam. The one LCC was and the three AGCs were , and . 1971