The Seabee Combat Warfare Specialist (SCWS) insignia is a warfare qualification of the

United States Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the maritime service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. It is the largest and most powerful navy in the world, with the estimated tonnage ...

. To be eligible to earn the SCWS insignia, personnel must first be assigned to a qualifying unit of the Naval Construction Force (

Seabees 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 ...

) such as Naval Construction Groups (NCG), Naval Construction Regiments (NCR), Naval Mobile Construction Battalions (NMCB), Underwater Construction Teams (UCT), and Construction Battalion Maintenance Units (CBMU), as well as personnel assigned to Amphibious Construction Battalions (ACB). As such, qualification is primarily earned by enlisted members of the Seabee Occupational Field ratings and members of the

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 ...

, however the insignia may be earned by any officer or enlisted member assigned to a qualifying unit having completed the prescribed requirements. To be awarded the insignia, a service member must demonstrate superior proficiency in naval heritage, naval doctrine, command and control, hazardous material/hazardous waste environmental safety, supply & logistics, communications and communications security, weapons, general military tactics, contingency operations, embarkation, safety, basic first aid, civil engineer support equipment, and chemical, biological, and radiological warfare. In addition to preparatory coursework, personnel are required to complete Personal Qualification Standards (PQS) common to all qualifying units as well as a PQS specific to the type unit assigned. Officers are required to complete an officer specific PQS in addition to all aspects of the enlisted program as well as demonstrate broad and deep knowledge proficiency commensurate with their increased responsibilities. Upon completion of the above, members must meet career performance and physical fitness standards, participate in a field training exercise or actual operations, pass a written knowledge test, complete a preparatory oral knowledge board, and lastly pass a final comprehensive oral examination board. The insignia is issued in two degrees: silver for enlisted personnel and gold for officers. The insignia features an armed Seabee, superimposed over a crossed sword and rifle (a

Springfield M1903 The M1903 Springfield, officially the United States Rifle, Caliber .30-06, Model 1903, is an American five-round magazine-fed, bolt-action service repeating rifle, used primarily during the first half of the 20th century. The M1903 was first ...

) atop oak leaves. On the officer's insignia the rifle is crossed with an officer's saber, while the enlisted insignia is crossed with a cutlass. The bee is also the insignia for the Navy Seabees as a whole. The authorizing instruction, "Seabee Combat Warfare Specialist", OPNAVINST 1410.1, Department of the Navy, Office of the Chief of Naval Operations, Washington, DC 20350-2000, was released in March 1992. The design evolved over the coming months followed by approvals and production of the device. During the same period the initial applications for the insignia were prepared, reviewed and considered for approval. An enlisted member who receives the SCWS insignia is authorized to place the designator (SCW) after his/her rating designator. For example, if Ralph Manzie is an SCW-qualified Construction Mechanic Senior Chief Petty Officer, then his written name would be CMCS (SCW) Ralph Manzie. The first person to wear this insignia was its designer,

Commander Commander (commonly abbreviated as Cmdr.) is a common naval officer rank. Commander is also used as a rank or title in other formal organizations, including several police forces. In several countries this naval rank is termed frigate captain. ...

Ross S. Selvidge, CEC, USNR, at the Navy Reserve Center, Los Alamitos, CA, in March 1993.

See also