The amphibious assault ship USS Boxer received the 2013 Battle Effectiveness (Battle E) Award for Commander, Amphibious Squadron One.
The announcement was made via naval message from Commander, Naval Surface Force Pacific, March 20.
In addition to the 2013 award, Boxer also was the recipient in 2011 and 2012.
“I couldn’t be more excited or proud of this crew and the hard work they put in for this,” said Boxer’s Command Master Chief Todd Gruchalla. “There are Sailors aboard Boxer for whom this was their first duty station, and they’ll leave here with at least three Battle E awards, to me that speaks volumes.”
The Battle “E” recognizes the ship’s overall readiness and was determined by inspections and evaluations of accomplishments and milestones throughout the year. Superior performance in mission areas of maritime warfare, engineering/survivability; command, control, communications and information warfare, logistics management, and ship safety are all assessed.
“With much of 2013 spent training for and deploying to the U.S. Fifth Fleet, the crew has worked tirelessly not only to be the best on the waterfront, but to be the best for our nation while operating forward at sea,” said USS Boxer Commanding Officer, Capt. John E. Gumbleton. “Every Sailor aboard Boxer had a part in this award and we couldn’t have the continuing legacy or this much success on deployment without their pride in the ship.”
This year’s third Battle E is not the only consecutive award the ship received this year. Boxer also won its third Ship Safety, sixth Engineering/Survivability, 12th Logistics Management and 19th Maritime Warfare Excellence Awards.
“To me this is not something they were awarded or simply given, this is something they’ve earned,” added Gruchalla. “With the hard work and dedication these Sailors have given, they’ve earned that E on their ribbon bar, each and every one of them.”
Boxer is the flagship for the Boxer Amphibious Ready Group and, with the embarked 13th Marine Expeditionary Unit, is deployed in support of maritime security operations and theater security cooperation efforts in the U.S. 5th and 7th Fleet Areas of Responsibility.
[mappress] Press Release, March 31, 2014; Image: US Navy