Military Sealift Command ship makes history with rare combat award

Since its creation during the World War II, the Presidential Unit Citation has only been bestowed roughly 100 times — the through line being some of the most elite units and daring operations in U.S. military history. Now, an oil replenishment ship will join the ranks alongside storied units such as the Blackhorse Regiment and receive the nation’s highest military honor for unit-level combat valor.

Next month the USNS Kanawha, a Henry J. Kaiser-class fleet replenishment oiler under Military Sealift Command, will receive the PUC for its support of the Ford Carrier Strike Group during Operation Epic Fury.

During its 204-day deployment, the ship, named after the Kanawha River in West Virginia, operated in the U.S. 4th, 5th and 6th Fleets, delivering more than 17 million gallons of fuel, 3,000 pallets of supplies and performing 113 replenishments to 29 U.S. and coalition vessels, according to the Defense Department.

Described by the department as a “strategic enabler,” the floating warehouse sustained Operations Southern Spear and Epic Fury before returning to Naval Station Norfolk, Virginia, on May 16.

The ceremony, set for mid-July, will make Kanawha the first auxiliary ship to receive the award, and the first in Military Sealift Command’s 77-year history.

The MSC operates approximately 125 civilian-crewed vessels that help sustain the U.S. Navy and DoD. While owned by the Navy, according to the MSC, its vessels are non-commissioned auxiliary ships crewed primarily by Civil Service Mariners or commercial contractors rather than active-duty sailors.

Kanawha’s sailors stand alongside the Ford Carrier Strike Group, which collectively received the PUC last month for its actions during Operation Epic Fury.

“The Kanawha was underway for seven long months supporting [the USS] Iwo Jima Amphibious Ready Group and the USS Gerald R. Ford Carrier Strike Group,” said Navy Capt. Elizabeth A. Nelson, Military Sealift Command Atlantic commodore, upon the vessel’s return to port. “Kanawha’s performance exemplifies how MSC’s combat logistics force powers modern naval operations, directly fueling U.S. Navy readiness at sea.”

Oilers like Kanawha are part of the MSC’s combat logistics force and are the “backbone of sustained operations at sea,” according to the Defense Department.

With this award, the Kanawha will join the ranks of elite Army Rangers on D-Day; multiple Army units during the Battle of the Bulge; the 1st Cavalry Division for its performance in Pleiku Province/Ia Drang Valley campaigns; and the Navy SEALs who killed Osama Bin Laden during Operation Neptune Spear in 2011.