US Navy 050807-F-4883S-115 The mine warfare countermeasure ship USS Devastator (MCM 6) makes her way through the Miraflores Locks of the Panama Canal on the Pacific side of Panama during PANAMAX 05

Panama Canal, Panama (Aug. 7, 2005) - The mine warfare countermeasure ship USS Devastator (MCM 6) makes her way through the Miraflores Locks of the Panama Canal on the Pacific side of Panama during PANAMAX 05. PANAMAX is a training exercise in defense of the Panama Canal involving 15 countries from Aug. 4-17. The Panama Canal is critical to the free flow of trade and goods in the Western Hemisphere and the entire world. The region's economy and stability largely depend on the safe transport of several hundred million tons of cargo that transit through the canal every year. U.S. Air Force photo by Tech. Sgt. Rick Sforza (RELEASED)