The Navy Unit Commendation is a unit award of the United States Navy that was established by order of the Secretary of the Navy James Forrestal on 18 December 1944. The ribbon is awarded by the Navy Secretary to any ship, aircraft, detachment, or other unit of the United States Navy or Marine Corps which has since 6 December 1941 distinguished itself in action against the enemy with outstanding heroism but not sufficient to justify award of the U.S. Presidential Unit Citation. To be eligible for the award, the unit must have performed service of a character comparable to that which would merit the award of a Silver Star Medal, or achievement of like caliber in a non-combat situation, to an individual. It is also awarded for non-combat service, in support of military operations, which was outstanding when compared to other units or organizations performing similar service.
The Coast Guard equivalent is the Coast Guard Unit Commendation.
U.S. Army units are also eligible so long as they are directly attached or assigned to U.S. Navy or U.S. Marine Corps units during the time period or event for which the award is given. U.S. Army personnel do not wear the Navy Unit Commendation ribbon as a part of their personal awards and medals but, rather, above the right breast pocket with other unit award emblems authorized for wear.
Famous quotes containing the words navy, unit and/or commendation:
“The Navy is the asylum for the perverse, the home of the unfortunate. Here the sons of adversity meet the children of calamity, and here the children of calamity meet the offspring of sin.”
—Herman Melville (1819–1891)
“During the Suffragette revolt of 1913 I ... [urged] that what was needed was not the vote, but a constitutional amendment enacting that all representative bodies shall consist of women and men in equal numbers, whether elected or nominated or coopted or registered or picked up in the street like a coroner’s jury. In the case of elected bodies the only way of effecting this is by the Coupled Vote. The representative unit must not be a man or a woman but a man and a woman.”
—George Bernard Shaw (1856–1950)
“A continual feast of commendation is only to be obtained by merit or by wealth: many are therefore obliged to content themselves with single morsels, and recompense the infrequency of their enjoyment by excess and riot, whenever fortune sets the banquet before them.”
—Samuel Johnson (1709–1784)