Naval Construction Battalion 5 was commissioned on May 25, 1942 at
Camp Allen
Camp Allen, is a small United States Marine Corps base in Norfolk, Virginia, a satellite of the Naval Station Norfolk. In 1942 the Chief of the Bureau of Yards and Docks (now NAVFAC) wanted the first Seabee training center close to an existing Nav ...
Va.
[Naval Mobile Construction Battalion FIVE: History, The Official website of the Naval Construction Force, Commander, Naval Construction Group ONE, 1436 Pacific Road, Port Hueneme, CA 93043-430]
/ref> The battalion went to Port Hueneme and shipped out for the first of two deployments in the Pacific war, Pacific. When the war ended CB 5 was decommissioned in the Philippines
The Philippines (; fil, Pilipinas, links=no), officially the Republic of the Philippines ( fil, Republika ng Pilipinas, links=no),
* bik, Republika kan Filipinas
* ceb, Republika sa Pilipinas
* cbk, República de Filipinas
* hil, Republ ...
. On July 10, 1951 the Battalion was re-commissioned as a MCB and remains an active unit today.
History
WWII
With pressing construction needs in the Pacific, Naval Construction Battalion 5 was "rushed" in its formation. With its ranks full of qualified tradesmen the battalion was quickly given its military indoctrination and processed in less than a month for transit to Port Hueneme
Port Hueneme ( ; Chumash: ''Wene Me'') is a small beach city in Ventura County, California, surrounded by the city of Oxnard and the Santa Barbara Channel. Both the Port of Hueneme and Naval Base Ventura County lie within the city limits.
P ...
, Ca. From there the battalion boarded ship and was the first CB into the Hawaiian Territory.[NCB 5 history file, Seabee Museum, Port Hueneme, Ca](_blank)
/ref> "NAS Honolulu" was actually Naval Air Station Barbers Point
Naval Air Station Barbers Point , on O'ahu, also called John Rodgers Field (the original name of Honolulu International Airport), is a former United States Navy airfield closed in 1999, and renamed Kalaeloa Airport. Parts of the former air station ...
and it was on CB 5's work list. Also on the list was Midway Atoll
Midway Atoll (colloquial: Midway Islands; haw, Kauihelani, translation=the backbone of heaven; haw, Pihemanu, translation=the loud din of birds, label=none) is a atoll in the North Pacific Ocean. Midway Atoll is an insular area of the Unit ...
. Sand Island had another airfield in need of attention. Rounding out the first deployment were projects on French Frigate Shoals
The French Frigate Shoals ( Hawaiian: Kānemilohai) is the largest atoll in the Northwestern Hawaiian Islands. Its name commemorates French explorer Jean-François de La Pérouse, who nearly lost two frigates when attempting to navigate the ...
, Canton Island
Canton Island (also known as Kanton or Abariringa), previously known as Mary Island, Mary Balcout's Island or Swallow Island, is the largest, northernmost, and , the sole inhabited island of the Phoenix Islands, in the Republic of Kiribati. It i ...
, Johnston Atoll
Johnston Atoll is an Unincorporated territories of the United States, unincorporated territory of the United States, currently administered by the United States Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS). Johnston Atoll is a National Wildlife Refuge and ...
and Palmyra atoll
Palmyra Atoll (), also referred to as Palmyra Island, is one of the Line Islands, Northern Line Islands (southeast of Kingman Reef and north of Kiribati). It is located almost due south of the Hawaiian Islands, roughly one-third of the way bet ...
. At French Frigate shoals an island had to be made for the base and airfield to be constructed upon. CB 5 was rotated CONUS
''Conus'' is a genus of predatory sea snails, or cone snails, marine gastropod mollusks in the family Conidae.Bouchet, P.; Gofas, S. (2015). Conus Linnaeus, 1758. In: MolluscaBase (2015). Accessed through: World Register of Marine Species at ...
on 19 March 1944, arriving Camp Parks, Ca on March 24. Five's Midway replacement was the 50th CB who arrived on April 4. From Camp Parks the battalion was transferred to Port Hueneme. While there the battalion was given its next assignment and attached to Cub-16. That was canceled with the battalion attached to the 7th Fleet
The Seventh Fleet is a numbered fleet of the United States Navy. It is headquartered at U.S. Fleet Activities Yokosuka, in Yokosuka, Kanagawa Prefecture, Japan. It is part of the United States Pacific Fleet. At present, it is the largest of th ...
and General MacArthur
Douglas MacArthur (26 January 18805 April 1964) was an American military leader who served as General of the Army for the United States, as well as a field marshal to the Philippine Army. He had served with distinction in World War I, was C ...
. On January 10, 1945 CB 5 departed Port Hueneme for Leyte
Leyte ( ) is an island in the Visayas group of islands in the Philippines. It is eighth-largest and sixth-most populous island in the Philippines, with a total population of 2,626,970 as of 2020 census.
Since the accessibility of land has be ...
where it arrived February 15. Nine days later the battalion would land at it new job site on Calicoan, Samar
Samar ( ) is the third-largest and seventh-most populous island in the Philippines, with a total population of 1,909,537 as of the 2020 census. It is located in the eastern Visayas, which are in the central Philippines. The island is divided in ...
. The main projects would be an ABCD,[US Navy Abbreviations of World War II, Naval History and Heritage Command, 1022 O Street SE, Washington, D.]
/ref> ACEPD, NSD and roads and water supply for all of it. At Calicoan CB 5 had divers doing shallow water work for a seaplane ramp.[NCB 5 Cruisebook, NHHC, Seabee Museum, Port Hueneme, Ca](_blank)
/ref> There were several detachments, one to both Advance Base Unit 10(NABU-10) and NABU-12. Able Company went to Balikpapan
Balikpapan is a seaport city in East Kalimantan, Indonesia. Located on the east coast of the island of Borneo, the city is the financial center of Kalimantan. Balikpapan is the city with the largest economy in Kalimantan with an estimated 2 ...
, Borneo
Borneo (; id, Kalimantan) is the third-largest island in the world and the largest in Asia. At the geographic centre of Maritime Southeast Asia, in relation to major Indonesian islands, it is located north of Java, west of Sulawesi, and eas ...
to help the Aussies joining Detachments from the 111th and 113th CBs. On 13 August the battalion learned it was assigned Operation Olympic the first element of Operation Downfall
Operation Downfall was the proposed Allied plan for the invasion of the Japanese home islands near the end of World War II. The planned operation was canceled when Japan surrendered following the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, th ...
. Downfall was the plan for the invasion of Japan
Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north ...
. Set to begin in November 1945, Operation Olympic was intended to capture the southern third of the Japanese island of Kyūshū
is the third-largest island of Japan's five main islands and the most southerly of the four largest islands ( i.e. excluding Okinawa). In the past, it has been known as , and . The historical regional name referred to Kyushu and its surround ...
. This was to be followed by Operation Coronet, the second element, which was planned to land near Tokyo
Tokyo (; ja, 東京, , ), officially the Tokyo Metropolis ( ja, 東京都, label=none, ), is the capital and largest city of Japan. Formerly known as Edo, its metropolitan area () is the most populous in the world, with an estimated 37.468 ...
. VJ-day
Victory over Japan Day (also known as V-J Day, Victory in the Pacific Day, or V-P Day) is the day on which Imperial Japan surrendered in World War II, in effect bringing the war to an end. The term has been applied to both of the days on ...
terminated these Operations leaving NCB 5 in the Philippines. CB 5 was then listed to be tasked to the Operation Beleaguer
Operation Beleaguer was a major United States military operation led by Maj. Gen. Keller E. Rockey. He commanded 50,000 men of the III Marine Amphibious Corps that deployed to northeastern China's Hopeh (Hebei, 河北) and Shantung (Shandong, ...
mission in China, but received notice mid-October that was canceled too. Naval Construction Battalion 5 was deactivated on December 3, 1945.
Korea
On July 15, 1951, CB 5 was reactivated as a MCB. The Korean War
, date = {{Ubl, 25 June 1950 – 27 July 1953 (''de facto'')({{Age in years, months, weeks and days, month1=6, day1=25, year1=1950, month2=7, day2=27, year2=1953), 25 June 1950 – present (''de jure'')({{Age in years, months, weeks a ...
had begun and the Navy realized it had a need for an air station in the region. Cubi Point in the Philippines
The Philippines (; fil, Pilipinas, links=no), officially the Republic of the Philippines ( fil, Republika ng Pilipinas, links=no),
* bik, Republika kan Filipinas
* ceb, Republika sa Pilipinas
* cbk, República de Filipinas
* hil, Republ ...
was selected, and civilian contractors were initially approached for the project. After seeing the Zambales Mountains
The Zambales Mountains is a mountain range on western Luzon island in the Philippines. The mountains separate Luzon's central plain from the South China Sea. Its most prominent section is known as the Cabusilan Mountain Range composed of Mount ...
and the surrounding jungle
A jungle is land covered with dense forest and tangled vegetation, usually in tropical climates. Application of the term has varied greatly during the past recent century.
Etymology
The word ''jungle'' originates from the Sanskrit word ''jaṅ ...
, they claimed it could not be done. The Navy then turned to the Seabees and was told no problem, Can do. The first Bees to arrive were surveyors
Surveying or land surveying is the technique, profession, art, and science of determining the terrestrial two-dimensional or three-dimensional positions of points and the distances and angles between them. A land surveying professional is ca ...
of CBD 1802. MCB 3 arrived on 2 October 1951 to get the project going and was joined by MCB 5 in November. Over the next five years, MCBs 2, 7, 9, 11 and CBD 1803 also contributed to the effort. They leveled a mountain to make way for a nearly runway. NAS Cubi Point turned out to be one of the largest earth-moving projects in the world, equivalent to the construction of the Panama Canal
The Panama Canal ( es, Canal de Panamá, link=no) is an artificial waterway in Panama that connects the Atlantic Ocean with the Pacific Ocean and divides North and South America. The canal cuts across the Isthmus of Panama and is a conduit ...
. Seabees there moved of dry fill plus another 15 million that was hydraulic fill
Hydraulic fill is a means of selectively emplacing soil or other materials using a stream of water. It is also a term used to describe the materials thus emplaced. Gravity, coupled with velocity control, is used to effect the selected depositi ...
. The $100 million facility was commissioned on 25 July 1956, and comprised an air station with an adjacent pier capable of docking the Navy's largest carriers. Adjusted-for-inflation, today's price-tag for what the Seabees built at Cubi Point would be $906,871,323.53.
The Philippine government did not renew the base's lease with the United States in 1992. The airfield now Subic Bay International Airport.
Vietnam
From 1965 to 1972, NMCB FIVE made six consecutive deployments to Vietnam
Vietnam or Viet Nam ( vi, Việt Nam, ), officially the Socialist Republic of Vietnam,., group="n" is a country in Southeast Asia, at the eastern edge of mainland Southeast Asia, with an area of and population of 96 million, making i ...
.
*September 1965 - May 1966, Danang
Nang or DanangSee also Danang Dragons ( ; vi, Đà Nẵng, ) is a class-1 municipality and the fifth-largest city in Vietnam by municipal population. It lies on the coast of the East Sea of Vietnam at the mouth of the Hàn River, and is one ...
~ Camp Hoover
*October 1966 - June 1967, East Danang ~ Camp Adenir, assigned to III Marine Amphibious Corps
*November 1967 - July 1968,Camp Barnes Dong Ha Combat Base
Dong or DONG may refer to:
Places
* Dong Lake, or East Lake, a lake in China
* Dong, Arunachal Pradesh, a village in India
* Dong (administrative division) (동 or 洞), a neighborhood division in Korea
Persons
*Queen Dong (1623–1681), princes ...
, assigned to III Marine Amphibious Corps
III Marine Expeditionary Force (III MEF) is a formation of the Marine Air-Ground Task Force of the United States Marine Corps. It is forward-deployed and able to rapidly conduct operations across the spectrum from humanitarian assistance and ...
*January - October 1969, Danang ~ Camp Hoover
*January - October 1970, North Danang ~ Camp Haskins, During this deployment the battalion was visited by many flag officers some of whom visited multiple Detachments multiple times.[NMCB 5 Completion Report 1970, NHHC website, 1022 O Street SE, Washington, D.]
/ref>
** Elmo Zumwalt, VADM E.R Zumwalt Jr., Chief of Naval Operations
**VADM J.H. King Jr., Commander U.S. Naval Force Vietnam
**RADM J. G. Dillon, Commander 3rd Naval Construction Brigade
**RADM A.R. Marschall, Commander 3rd Naval Construction Brigade
**RADM Combs COMSERPAC
**RADN Bonner NAVSUPPAC Danang
**RADM W.H.Heman COMCBPAC
**RADM Adamson, Commander Naval Support Activities, Siagon
**RADM H.S. Mathews Deputy U.S. Naval Force Vietnam
** Lt. Gen H. Nickerson Jr. USMC Commander III Marine Amphibious Corps
**Lt. Gen; Buss USMC Commander FMFPAC
** BGEN E.P. Yates USA MACVDC
**Commodore Chou RVN Navy Chief of Naval Operations
*Mar - Nov 1971, North Danang, Camp Haskins ~ Eight detachments in Vietnam plus dets to the Philippines, Guam
Guam (; ch, Guåhan ) is an organized, unincorporated territory of the United States in the Micronesia subregion of the western Pacific Ocean. It is the westernmost point and territory of the United States (reckoned from the geographic cent ...
, and Alaska
Alaska ( ; russian: Аляска, Alyaska; ale, Alax̂sxax̂; ; ems, Alas'kaaq; Yup'ik: ''Alaskaq''; tli, Anáaski) is a state located in the Western United States on the northwest extremity of North America. A semi-exclave of the U.S., ...
.[NMCB 5 Completion Report 1971, NHHC website, 1022 O Street SE, Washington, D.]
/ref> NMCB 5 was the last battalion to deploy to Vietnam March to November 1971. The battalion had numerous incidents with mines on that deployment. NMCB 5 also had an unusual number of flag officer visits again on this deployment.
In 1972, the battalion moved all its troops and equipment to Thailand. The project there was the construction of Royal Thai Air Base Nam Phong, Nam Phong Air Base.
Seabee Teams
*0501 DanPau, Jan 1963[Commander Naval julimpletion Report 1963–1972. Seabee Teams](_blank)
/ref>
*0501 Buom Me Ga, Apr 1963
7th Special Forces airstrip
*0502 Tri Ton
* Tri- is a numerical prefix meaning three. Tri or TRI may also refer to:
Places
* Tri-Cities Regional Airport, Tennessee, US, IATA code TRI
* Triangulum constellation, astronomical abbreviation Tri
People
*Tri, Former nickname for wrestler Trip ...
Jan 1963
*0502 Chau Lang ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
5th Special Forces airstrip
*0502 Dan Chau, Jun 1963 ~ ~
5th Special Forces Camp and airstrip
*0503 Minh Thanh, Jan 1964 ~
5th Special Forces
*0503 Moc Hoa, Mar 1964 ~ ~
5th Special Forces
*0503 Bu Gia Map, Jun 1964 ~
5th Special Forces
*0504 Pleiku
Pleiku is a city in central Vietnam, located in the Central Highlands region. It is the capital of the Gia Lai Province. Many years ago, it was inhabited primarily by the Bahnar and Jarai ethnic groups, sometimes known as the Montagnards or De ...
, Jan 1964 ~ ~ ~ ~
5th Special Forces Camp and airstrip
*0504 Kannack Special, Feb 1964
5th Special Forces Camp and airstrip
*0504 Dong Ba Thin, May 1964
5th Special Forces Camp and airstrip
*0504 Nha Trang
Nha Trang ( or ; ) is a coastal city and capital of Khánh Hòa Province, on the South Central Coast of Vietnam. It is bounded on the north by Ninh Hòa District, Ninh Hoà town, on the south by Cam Ranh city and on the west by Diên Khánh Distri ...
, May 1964
*0505 Quang Tri, Oct 1964
*0505 Phar Rang, Dec 1964
*0506 Quang Ngai, Oct 1964
*0506 Da Nang
Nang or DanangSee also Danang Dragons ( ; vi, Đà Nẵng, ) is a class-1 municipality and the fifth-largest city in Vietnam by municipal population. It lies on the coast of the East Sea of Vietnam at the mouth of the Hàn River, and is one ...
, Mar 1965
*0507 Dran, Nov 1965
*MTT#5 Pleiku, Oct 1965 (Well drilling team)
*0509 Thoai Son, Dec 1966
*0510 Tan An, Jan 1967
*0511 Bao Trai, Sep 1967
*0511 Go Dau Ha, Jan 1968
*0513 Tan Son Nhut
Tân Sơn Nhất International Airport ( vi, Sân bay quốc tế Tân Sơn Nhất or Cảng hàng không quốc tế Tân Sơn Nhất) is the busiest airport in Vietnam with 32.5 million passengers in 2016 and 38.5 million passengers in 2018 ...
, 0Dec 1968
*0513 Ben Tre
Ben is frequently used as a shortened version of the given names Benjamin, Benedict, Bennett or Benson, and is also a given name in its own right.
Ben (in he, בֶּן, ''son of'') forms part of Hebrew surnames, e.g. Abraham ben Abraham ( he, ...
, Jan 1969
*0514 Phu Vinh, Feb 1969
*0517 Ben Tre
Ben is frequently used as a shortened version of the given names Benjamin, Benedict, Bennett or Benson, and is also a given name in its own right.
Ben (in he, בֶּן, ''son of'') forms part of Hebrew surnames, e.g. Abraham ben Abraham ( he, ...
, Apr 1970
*Det. Ba To 1970 ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
Special Forces Camp runway upgrade
*0518 Soc Trang, Mar 1971
Post Vietnam, Iraq
NMCB 5 history
*On August 7, 1990 CBs 4, 5, 7, and 40 were ordered to start preparations for Operation Desert Shield
The Gulf War was a 1990–1991 armed campaign waged by a Coalition of the Gulf War, 35-country military coalition in response to the Iraqi invasion of Kuwait. Spearheaded by the United States, the coalition's efforts against Ba'athist Iraq, ...
. From January through March, 1991 NMCB Five provided support to the 1st Marine Expeditionary Force
The I Marine Expeditionary Force ("I" pronounced "One") is a Marine Air Ground Task Force (MAGTF) of the United States Marine Corps primarily composed of the 1st Marine Division, 3rd Marine Aircraft Wing, and 1st Marine Logistics Group. It is ...
for both Operation Desert Shield and Operation Desert Storm
Operation or Operations may refer to:
Arts, entertainment and media
* ''Operation'' (game), a battery-operated board game that challenges dexterity
* Operation (music), a term used in musical set theory
* ''Operations'' (magazine), Multi-Man ...
. There were projects at Ahmed Al Jaber Air Base, Ali Al Salem Air Base
Ali Al Salem Air Base is a military air base situated in Kuwait, approximately 23 miles (37 km) from the Iraqi border, and roughly 15 km west of Al Jahra. The airfield is owned by the Government of Kuwait, and during Operation Souther ...
and Camp Moreell.
*On March 21, 2003, Five's Seabee Engineering Reconnaissance Team SERT-5 along with four other SERTs crossed from Kuwait
Kuwait (; ar, الكويت ', or ), officially the State of Kuwait ( ar, دولة الكويت '), is a country in Western Asia. It is situated in the northern edge of Eastern Arabia at the tip of the Persian Gulf, bordering Iraq to the nort ...
into Iraq
Iraq,; ku, عێراق, translit=Êraq officially the Republic of Iraq, '; ku, کۆماری عێراق, translit=Komarî Êraq is a country in Western Asia. It is bordered by Turkey to Iraq–Turkey border, the north, Iran to Iran–Iraq ...
with Task Force Tarawa
Task Force Tarawa (TFT) was the name given to the 2nd Marine Expeditionary Brigade during the 2003 invasion of Iraq. It was a Marine Air-Ground Task Force commanded by Brigadier General Richard F. NatonskiNatonski message. that was attached to ...
. They were an element of the 1st Marine Expeditionary Force Engineer Group(1MEF) and the lead SERT for the 2nd Marine Division
The 2nd Marine Division (2nd MARDIV) is a division of the United States Marine Corps, which forms the ground combat element of the II Marine Expeditionary Force (II MEF). The division is based at Marine Corps Base Camp Lejeune, North Carolina ...
. Their assignment was to evaluate Road 16 from An Nasiriyah
Nasiriyah ( ar, ٱلنَّاصِرِيَّة; BGN: ''An Nāşirīyah''; also spelled ''Nassiriya'' or ''Nasiriya'') is a city in Iraq. It is on the lower Euphrates, about south-southeast of Baghdad, near the ruins of the ancient city of Ur. ...
to Amarah
Amarah ( ar, ٱلْعَمَارَة, al-ʿAmārah), also spelled Amara, is a city in south-eastern Iraq, located on a low ridge next to the Tigris River waterway south of Baghdad about 50 km (31 mi) from the border with Iran. It lies at the ...
and from there Road 17 on to Qalat Sukkar and ultimately to the outskirts of Ad Diwaniyah as well as all the bridges along the way. It is believed that the team was the first Seabees to come under fire since the Vietnam war.[SERT, SEABEE ENGINEER RECONNAISSANCE TEAM, ANDREW G. WRIGHTof the ENGINEERING NEWS-RECORD, SEABEE MAGAZINE SPECIAL COMMEMORATIVE DOUBLE ISSUE 2003, Naval Facilities Engineering Command (NAVFAC), Attn: SEABEE Online (Code PA), 1322 Patterson Ave., S.E., Bldg. 33, Suite 1000, Washington Navy Yard, DC 20374-5065, p. 58. ]
/ref> SERT-5 was augmented by three members of UnderwaterConstruction Team 2. SERT-5 was relieved by the SERT-4 at the airfield outside Qalat Sukkar.
*NMCB Five was called into action again in support of the Global War on Terrorism during its 2005 deployment. Personnel from NMCB Five were integrated with reserve unit NMCB TWO SEVEN sending over 330 personnel to various locations throughout Southwest Asia. Majority of the work was in support of Special Operations Command with many sites being classified. Many personnel provided direct support to the Iraqi Army by constructing bases and facilities to support their ongoing struggle for stability.
*NMCB FIVE was deployed to Afghanistan
Afghanistan, officially the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan,; prs, امارت اسلامی افغانستان is a landlocked country located at the crossroads of Central Asia and South Asia. Referred to as the Heart of Asia, it is bordere ...
from February to August in 2009 to work on Camp Leatherneck
Camp Leatherneck was a 1,600 acre United States Marine Corps base in Helmand Province, Afghanistan. The site was mostly in Washir District and was conjoined with Camp Bastion, which was the main British military base in Afghanistan and Camp Sho ...
. The battalion returned again in 2010.
Disaster recovery
* 1962 Typhoon Karen
Typhoon Karen was the most powerful tropical cyclone to strike the island of Guam, and has been regarded as one of the most destructive events in the island's history. It was first identified as a tropical disturbance on November 6, 1962, ...
Guam Naval Base, MCB 5 set up 500 tents for the islanders
* 1989 Hurricane Hugo
Hurricane Hugo was a powerful Cape Verde tropical cyclone that inflicted widespread damage across the northeastern Caribbean and the Southeastern United States in September 1989. Across its track, Hugo affected approximately 2 million peop ...
Charleston, SC, Antigua
Antigua ( ), also known as Waladli or Wadadli by the native population, is an island in the Lesser Antilles. It is one of the Leeward Islands in the Caribbean region and the main island of the country of Antigua and Barbuda. Antigua and Bar ...
and Puerto Rico
Puerto Rico (; abbreviated PR; tnq, Boriken, ''Borinquen''), officially the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico ( es, link=yes, Estado Libre Asociado de Puerto Rico, lit=Free Associated State of Puerto Rico), is a Caribbean island and Unincorporated ...
* 1995 Hurricane Luis
Hurricane Luis was a long lived and powerful Category 4 hurricane. It was the strongest hurricane to make landfall and the third-most intense hurricane recorded during the 1995 Atlantic hurricane season. The storm, along with Humberto, Iris, an ...
Antigua, St. Thomas, St. John
* 1995 Hurricane Marilyn
Hurricane Marilyn was the most powerful hurricane to strike the Virgin Islands since Hurricane Hugo of 1989, and the third such tropical cyclone in roughly a two-week time span to strike or impact the Leeward Islands, the others being Hurricane ...
Antigua, St. Thomas, St. John
* 1993 Ventura County fires
* 2000 Alaska Airlines Flight 261
Alaska Airlines Flight 261 was an Alaska Airlines flight of a McDonnell Douglas MD-83 plane that crashed into the Pacific Ocean on January 31, 2000, roughly north of Anacapa Island, California, following a catastrophic loss of pitch control, k ...
crash
List of commanding officers
Unit Awards
*
Navy Unit Commendation
The Navy Unit Commendation (NUC) is a United States Navy unit award that was established by order of the Secretary of the Navy James Forrestal on 18 December 1944.
History
Navy and U.S. Marine Corps commands may recommend any Navy or Marine Co ...
1967 Vietnam[NMCB 5 Cruise book 1974-75, Seabee Museum, Port Hueneme, Ca, p. 7/200](_blank)
/ref>
*
Navy Unit Commendation
The Navy Unit Commendation (NUC) is a United States Navy unit award that was established by order of the Secretary of the Navy James Forrestal on 18 December 1944.
History
Navy and U.S. Marine Corps commands may recommend any Navy or Marine Co ...
1971, 8 man det Vietnam
*
Navy Meritorious Unit Commendation
The Meritorious Unit Commendation (MUC; pronounced ''muck'') is a mid-level unit award of the United States Armed Forces. The U.S. Army awards units the Army MUC for exceptionally meritorious conduct in performance of outstanding achievement or s ...
1971
*
Navy Meritorious Unit Commendation
The Meritorious Unit Commendation (MUC; pronounced ''muck'') is a mid-level unit award of the United States Armed Forces. The U.S. Army awards units the Army MUC for exceptionally meritorious conduct in performance of outstanding achievement or s ...
1971, 9 man det Vietnam
*
Navy Meritorious Unit Commendation
The Meritorious Unit Commendation (MUC; pronounced ''muck'') is a mid-level unit award of the United States Armed Forces. The U.S. Army awards units the Army MUC for exceptionally meritorious conduct in performance of outstanding achievement or s ...
1971, 14 man det Vietnam
*
Navy Unit Commendation
The Navy Unit Commendation (NUC) is a United States Navy unit award that was established by order of the Secretary of the Navy James Forrestal on 18 December 1944.
History
Navy and U.S. Marine Corps commands may recommend any Navy or Marine Co ...
1971 Vietnam
*
Navy Meritorious Unit Commendation
The Meritorious Unit Commendation (MUC; pronounced ''muck'') is a mid-level unit award of the United States Armed Forces. The U.S. Army awards units the Army MUC for exceptionally meritorious conduct in performance of outstanding achievement or s ...
1989
*
Coast Guard Meritorious Unit Commendation
The Meritorious Unit Commendation (MUC; pronounced ''muck'') is a mid-level unit award of the United States Armed Forces. The U.S. Army awards units the Army MUC for exceptionally meritorious conduct in performance of outstanding achievement or s ...
2000
*
Navy Unit Commendation
The Navy Unit Commendation (NUC) is a United States Navy unit award that was established by order of the Secretary of the Navy James Forrestal on 18 December 1944.
History
Navy and U.S. Marine Corps commands may recommend any Navy or Marine Co ...
01Mar2005–28Feb2006 2D Marine Division
*
Presidential Unit Citation USN/USMC 2009-10 Marine Expeditionary Brigade-Afghanistan
*
Navy "E" Ribbon
The Navy "E" Ribbon or Battle Efficiency Ribbon (informally the Battle "E" ribbon) was authorized on March 31, 1976, by Secretary of the Navy J. William Middendorf as a unit award for battle efficiency competition. The service ribbon replaced th ...
: – U.S. Atlantic Fleet Battle "E" 14 times.
*Peltier Award: – 4 times.
*Best of Type: Seabee Team 0517[This Week in Seabee History: Dec. 9-15, Dr Frank A. Blazich Jr., Seabee Museum Archives, Port Hueneme, CA]
*Naval Construction Brigade Commander's Commendation
*Commendatory letter, Major General Hugh H. Casey, U.S.Army Chief Engineer 31 Aug, 1945
Campaign and service awards
Vietnam Service
MCB 5 saw service in 13 of the award periods.
* American Campaign Medal
The American Campaign Medal is a military award of the United States Armed Forces which was first created on November 6, 1942, by issued by President Franklin D. Roosevelt. The medal was intended to recognize those military members who had perfo ...
- Territory Hawaii
* Asiatic-Pacific Campaign Medal w/2 bronze stars
* World War II Victory Medal
The World War II Victory Medal is a service medal of the United States military which was established by an Act of Congress on 6 July 1945 (Public Law 135, 79th Congress) and promulgated by Section V, War Department Bulletin 12, 1945.
The Wor ...
* Vietnam Campaign Medal
The Republic of Vietnam Campaign Medal, also known as the Vietnam Campaign Medal ( vi, Chiến Dịch Bội Tinh), is a South Vietnamese military campaign medal which was created in 1949, and awarded to French military personnel during the First ...
service ribbon with ''60– '' Device : –
* Vietnam Service Medal
The Vietnam Service Medal is a military award of the United States Armed Forces established on 8 July 1965 by order of President Lyndon B. Johnson. The medal is awarded to recognize service during the Vietnam War by all members of the U.S. A ...
: –
* Navy Expeditionary Medal
The Navy Expeditionary Medal is a military award of the United States Navy which was established in August 1936.
Award criteria
The General Orders of the Department of the Navy which established the medal states, "The medal will be awarded, to ...
1979
* U.S. Coast Guard Special Operations Service Ribbon 1989
* :Humanitarian Service Medal 1989
* Global War on Terrorism Expeditionary Medal
The Global War on Terrorism Expeditionary Medal (GWOT-EM) is a United States Armed Forces award created by George W. Bush on 12 March 2003, through Executive Order 13289. The medal recognizes those military service members who have deployed over ...
* Afghanistan Campaign Medal
The Afghanistan Campaign Medal (ACM) is a military award of the United States Armed Forces which was created by Executive Order 13363 of President George W. Bush on November 29, 2004, and became available for general distribution in June 2005. T ...
* Iraq Campaign Medal
The Iraq Campaign Medal (ICM) is a military award of the United States Armed Forces which was created by Executive Order 13363 of U.S. President George W. Bush on 29 November 2004, and became available for general distribution in June 2005. ...
See also
*Admiral Ben Moreell
Admiral Ben Moreell (September 14, 1892 – July 30, 1978) was the chief of the U.S. Navy's Bureau of Yards and Docks and of the Civil Engineer Corps. Best known to the American public as the father of the Navy's Seabees, Moreell's life spanned ...
*Amphibious Construction Battalion 1
Amphibious Construction Battalion ONE (ACB1 or ACB-1 or PHIBCB 1 or PHIBCB One) is an amphibious construction battalion in the United States Navy based in Coronado, California. Amphibious Construction Battalion TWO is its sister unit based in Na ...
(ACB-1)
* Amphibious Construction Battalion 2 (ACB-2)
*Civil Engineer Corps
The Civil Engineer Corps (CEC) is a staff corps of the United States Navy. CEC officers are professional engineers and architects, acquisitions specialists, and Seabee Combat Warfare Officers who qualify within Seabee units. They are responsib ...
United States Navy
*Naval Construction Battalion
, colors =
, mascot = Bumblebee
, battles = Guadalcanal, Bougainville, Cape Gloucester, Los Negros, Guam, Peleliu, Tarawa, Kwajalein, Saipan, Tinian, Iwo Jima, Philippi ...
*Naval Amphibious Base Little Creek
A navy, naval force, or maritime force is the branch of a nation's armed forces principally designated for naval and amphibious warfare; namely, lake-borne, riverine, littoral, or ocean-borne combat operations and related functions. It includ ...
*Naval Amphibious Base Coronado
Naval Amphibious Base Coronado (NAB Coronado) is a US naval installation located across the bay from San Diego, California. The base, situated on the Silver Strand, between San Diego Bay and the Pacific Ocean, is a major Navy shore command, sup ...
*Naval Construction Battalion Center (Gulfport, Mississippi)
Naval Construction Battalion Center is a U.S. Navy industrial complex located in Gulfport, Mississippi. It serves as home base for the Atlantic Fleet Seabees, which are the Navy's construction battalions.
Mission
The mission of the Naval Construc ...
*Naval Construction Battalion Center Port Hueneme
Naval Construction Battalion Center Port Hueneme, operated as an independent base from 1942 to 2000 as the West Coast home port of the Navy’s Construction Battalions. In 2000, the CBC merged with nearby Naval Air Station Point Mugu to form ...
*Naval Mobile Construction Battalion 1
Naval Mobile Construction Battalion 1 (NMCB ONE), is a United States Navy Seabee battalion. NMCB ONE, the original "Pioneers", has a long, proud and distinguished history as the very first Naval Construction Battalion of the service that would ...
*Naval Mobile Construction Battalion 3
Naval Mobile Construction Battalion THREE (NMCB 3) is a United States Navy Seabee that was one of the three original Construction Battalions authorized to be formed in 1942. In May 1942 Naval Construction Battalion 3 deployed to the Territory o ...
*Naval Mobile Construction Battalion 4
Naval Mobile Construction Battalion 4 (NMCB 4) is a Navy Seabee battalion homeported at Port Hueneme, California. Nicknamed the "Pioneers", it is the first of the many CBs created after the original three. The Battalion's current insignia fi ...
* Naval Mobile Construction Battalion 11
*Naval Mobile Construction Battalion 133
Naval Mobile Construction Battalion 133 (NMCB 133) is a United States Navy Construction Battalion, otherwise known as a Seabee Battalion, homeported at the Naval Construction Battalion Center (Gulfport, Mississippi) (aka: Naval Mobile Constructio ...
*Seabees in World War II
When World War II broke out the United States Naval Construction Battalions (Seabees) did not exist. The logistics of a two theater war were daunting to conceive. Rear Admiral Moreell completely understood the issues. What needed to be done ...
*Seabee
United States Naval Construction Battalions, better known as the Navy Seabees, form the U.S. Naval Construction Force (NCF). The Seabee nickname is a heterograph of the initial letters "CB" from the words "Construction Battalion". Depending upon ...
*Underwater Construction Teams
Underwater Construction Teams (UCT) are the United States Navy Seabees' underwater construction units numbered 1 and 2 that were created in 1974. A team is composed of divers qualified in both underwater construction and underwater demolition ...
References
External links and further reading
Deployment completion reports: After action reports for NMCB-5
{{portal bar, World War II
Seabee battalions of the United States Navy
Military units and formations of the Iraq War
United States Navy in the War in Afghanistan (2001–2021)