PEARL HARBOR, Hawaii - Airman John Perez, a native of San Francisco, serves aboard USS Theodore Roosevelt, a U.S. Navy warship participating in the biennial Rim of the Pacific (RIMPAC) exercise in and around the Hawaiian Islands.
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| Photo by Mass Communication Specialist 1st Class Patricia Elkins, Navy Office of Community Outreach |
Perez graduated from Mission High School in 2021 and joined the Navy two and a half years ago.
“I joined the Navy to follow in my uncle's footsteps and to give my daughter and wife a better life,” Perez said. “My uncle served in the Navy as a logistics specialist.”
The skills and values needed to succeed in the Navy are similar to those found in San Francisco.
“My football coach taught me growing up that closed mouths don’t get fed,” Perez said. “In the Navy, you have to ask questions and advocate for yourself in order to grow.”
Today, Perez serves as an aviation support equipment technician.
As the world’s largest international maritime exercise, 31 nations, approximately 40 surface ships, five submarines, 14 national land forces, over 140 aircraft and more than 25,000 personnel will participate in RIMPAC 2026. This exercise provides a unique training opportunity that helps participants foster and sustain cooperative relationships that are critical to ensuring safety at sea and security on the world’s oceans. RIMPAC 2026 marks the 30th exercise in a series that began in 1971.
The theme of RIMPAC 2026 is “Partners: Integrated and Prepared.” The participating nations and forces exercise a wide range of capabilities and demonstrate the inherent flexibility of maritime forces. These capabilities range from disaster relief and maritime security operations to sea control and complex warfighting. The relevant, realistic training program includes gunnery, missile, anti-submarine and air defense exercises, as well as amphibious, counter-piracy, mine clearance operations, explosive ordnance disposal and diving and salvage operations.
It is fitting that the world's premier maritime exercise occurs as the United States celebrates its 250th anniversary. For 250 years, the United States has built relationships with international partners based on trust, cooperation, and shared values. RIMPAC is where that trust is put into practice, strengthening the people-to-people relationships that are the bedrock of all the nations’ collective security.
Perez plays an important role in the exercise.
“RIMPAC is fun,” Perez said. It's nice to meet sailors from other countries and see how they do things.”
Perez serves a Navy that operates far forward, around the world and around the clock, promoting the nation's prosperity and security.
“Serving in the Navy means I can be a role model to my daughter,” Perez said. “It also means I can show her not to be scared to chase different opportunities.”
Perez is grateful to others for helping make a Navy career possible.
“I want to thank my wife, Janet, for holding it down at home and for taking care of our daughter,” Perez added. “I also want to thank my daughter for pushing me and for being the reason I do this. She’s only two, but she’s always so happy to see me every time I get back home. She gives me the energy I need. Lastly, I want to thank my uncle for motivating me. He gave me so much great advice about what he learned in the Navy. He also has a kid, and he showed me that little sacrifices are worth it for a better future.”
Hosted by Commander, U.S. Pacific Fleet, RIMPAC 2026 will be led by Commander, U.S. 3rd Fleet, Rear Adm. Richard Meyer, who will serve as Combined Task Force (CTF) commander. Chile will fill the role of deputy commander of the CTF, and Japan will fill the role of vice commander. The Republic of Korea will command the maritime component, and Canada will command the air component.
During RIMPAC, a network of capable, adaptive partners train and operate together in order to strengthen their collective forces and promote a free and open Indo-Pacific. RIMPAC 2026 contributes to the increased interoperability, resiliency and agility needed by the Joint and Combined Force to deter and defeat aggression by major powers across all domains and levels of conflict.
More information about RIMPAC is available here: https://www.cpf.navy.mil/RIMPAC/