By Mass Communication Specialist 1st Class Daniel Hinton, Submarine Force Pacific Public Affairs
JOINT BASE PEARL HARBOR, Hawaii (NNS) -- The crew of USS North Carolina (SSN 777) received a Navy Unit Commendation from Capt. Richard Seif, commanding officer of Submarine Squadron ONE, Jan. 13 pier side, aboard Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam.
Cmdr. Gary Montalvo, North Carolina's commanding officer, said he attributed the award to the work of the crew.
"You don't see all the hard work behind the scenes keeping the ship operating and at sea so that the important missions can be done” said Montalvo. “There were no boundaries between the divisions and we all worked together as one. The synergy of the entire crew overcame the challenges of a few every time.”
Montalvo also noted the importance of the award but cautioned from being satisfied.
"Our past is worth remembering, but we must remain humble, hungry and charge forward to the success of the future,” said Montalvo.
Electronics Technician 2nd Class Cameron Slate, a member of the crew during the North Carolina’s most recent deployment, said the crew worked hard and was able to meet every challenge as a cohesive unit.
“Every deployment starts with a goal and the crew worked really well as a team to meet those goals no matter how hard they were,” said Slate. “We worked our butts off to meet the mission. That doesn’t mean there weren't challenges but this award showed we overcame them and stuck together doing it.”
Lt. Cmdr. Brian Pennington, North Carolina’s weapons officer, said the crew consistently did an outstanding job.
“The crew was just unwilling to lose or not be in the game,” said Pennington. “Every division from the navigation to the auxiliary divisions did what they had to do to be in the right place at the right time.”
Pennington said, he was happy the crew was awarded such a prestigious honor.
“It is a huge deal to be identified and recognized by the entire Navy as a ship that achieved a lot of success in only a six-month deployment,” said Pennington.
Former Secretary of the Navy James V. Forrestal established the Navy Unit Commendation Dec. 19, 1944. The Secretary of the Navy may award the Navy Unit Commendation to any unit of the Navy or Marine Corps that distinguishes itself by outstanding heroism in action against an enemy.
It may also be awarded to a unit that distinguishes itself through extremely meritorious service not involving combat (but in support of military operations), which renders that unit outstanding when compared to other units performing similar service.
North Carolina is the fourth ship of the Navy to carry the name of the Tar heel State. North Carolina is a Virginia class fast attack submarine and is able to attack targets ashore with highly accurate Tomahawk cruise missiles and conduct covert long-term surveillance of land areas, littoral waters or other sea-based forces. Other missions include anti-submarine and anti-ship warfare; special forces delivery and support; and mine delivery and minefield mapping.
North Carolina returned to its homeport of Pearl Harbor March 17, 2016, after the successful completion of her third scheduled deployment to the Western Pacific.
For more news from the Pacific Submarine Force, visit www.csp.navy.mil.
Date Taken: | 01.13.2017 |
Date Posted: | 01.17.2017 17:16 |
Story ID: | 220365 |
Location: | PEARL HARBOR, HAWAII, US |
Web Views: | 781 |
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