Amphibious Construction Battalion ONE (ACB1 or ACB-1 or PHIBCB 1 or PHIBCB One) is an amphibious construction battalion in the

United States Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the naval warfare, maritime military branch, service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is the world's most powerful navy with the largest Displacement (ship), displacement, at 4.5 millio ...

based in

Coronado, California Coronado (Spanish language, Spanish for "Crowned") is a resort town, resort city in San Diego County, California, United States, across San Diego Bay from downtown San Diego. It was founded in the 1880s and incorporated in 1890. Its population ...

, and last in type unit.

Amphibious Construction Battalion TWO Amphibious Construction Battalion TWO (abbreviated as ACB 2, or PHIBCB 2) was an amphibious construction battalion in the United States Navy based in Little Creek, Virginia. ACB 2 was decommissioned on 31 March 2023. Amphibious Construction Batt ...

was its sister unit based in

Little Creek, Virginia Little is a synonym for small size and may refer to: Arts and entertainment * ''Little'' (album), 1990 debut album of Vic Chesnutt * ''Little'' (film), 2019 American comedy film *The Littles, a series of children's novels by American author John P ...

Mission

ACB-1's primary mission is to provide Ship to Shore transport of combat cargo, bulk fuel and water, and tactical camp operations supporting Amphibious Ready Group,

Marine Expeditionary Force A Marine expeditionary force (MEF), formerly known as a Marine amphibious force, is the largest type of a Marine air-ground task force. A MEF is the largest building block of United States Marine Corps combat power. __TOC__ Structure A MEF is l ...

, Brigade sized operations, Combined/Joint Logistics Over the Shore (C/JLOTS), and

Maritime Prepositioning Force Strategic sealift ships are part of the United States Military Sealift Command's (MSC) prepositioning program. There are currently 17 ships in the program, strategically positioned around the world to support the Army, Navy, Air Force, Marine Corp ...

(MPF) Operations.

History

World War II – 104th Naval Construction Battalion ACB-1 was originally commissioned at

Camp Peary Camp Peary is a U.S. military reservation in York County near Williamsburg, Virginia, which hosts a covert CIA training facility known as "The Farm". Officially referred to as an Armed Forces Experimental Training Activity (AFETA) under the ...

Williamsburg, Virginia Williamsburg is an Independent city (United States), independent city in Virginia, United States. It had a population of 15,425 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. Located on the Virginia Peninsula, Williamsburg is in the northern par ...

, 16 July 1943, as the 104th

Naval Construction Battalion United States Naval Construction Battalions, better known as the Navy Seabees, form the U.S. Naval Construction Forces (NCF). The Seabee nickname is a heterograph of the initial letters "CB" from the words "Construction Battalion". Dependi ...

and was sent to Camp Endicott,

Gulfport, Mississippi Gulfport ( ) is a city in Harrison County, Mississippi, United States, and its co-county seat. It had a population of 72,926 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, making it the List of municipalities in Mississippi, second-most populous ...

. During

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

CBs sent to the

Pacific The Pacific Ocean is the largest and deepest of Earth's five oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic Ocean in the north to the Southern Ocean, or, depending on the definition, to Antarctica in the south, and is bounded by the cont ...

were attached to one of the four Amphibious Corps: I, III, and V were

U.S. Marine Corps The United States Marine Corps (USMC), also referred to as the United States Marines or simply the Marines, is the maritime land force service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is responsible for conducting expeditionary ...

(under Admiral Nimitz, CINCPOA,

Pearl Harbor Pearl Harbor is an American lagoon harbor on the island of Oahu, Hawaii, west of Honolulu. It was often visited by the naval fleet of the United States, before it was acquired from the Hawaiian Kingdom by the U.S. with the signing of the Reci ...

) while VII Amphibious Corps was

U.S. Army The United States Army (USA) is the primary land service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is designated as the Army of the United States in the United States Constitution.Article II, section 2, clause 1 of the United Stat ...

(under

General MacArthur Douglas MacArthur (26 January 18805 April 1964) was an American general who served as a top commander during World War II and the Korean War, achieving the rank of General of the Army. He served with distinction in World War I; as chief of ...

, SWPA,

Brisbane, Australia Brisbane ( ; ) is the List of Australian capital cities, capital and largest city of the States and territories of Australia, state of Queensland and the list of cities in Australia by population, third-most populous city in Australia, with a ...

). During WWII there were five battalions tasked with pontoons, barges and the building of ship to shore causeways: CBs 70, 81, 111, 128, and 302. The 104th was attached to VII Amphibious group in 1943 and sent to Gamadodo Center,

Naval Base Milne Bay Naval Base Milne Bay, also called Naval Advance Base Milne Bay, was new major United States Navy sea and airbase base built on Milne Bay in Milne Bay Province in south-eastern Papua New Guinea. By spring 1943, the build up of the US Navy to s ...

Milne Bay Milne Bay is a large bay in Milne Bay Province, south-eastern Papua New Guinea. More than long and over wide, Milne Bay is a sheltered deep-water harbor accessible via Ward Hunt Strait. It is surrounded by the heavily wooded Stirling Range (Papu ...

New Guinea New Guinea (; Hiri Motu: ''Niu Gini''; , fossilized , also known as Papua or historically ) is the List of islands by area, world's second-largest island, with an area of . Located in Melanesia in the southwestern Pacific Ocean, the island is ...

;

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country comprising mainland Australia, the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania and list of islands of Australia, numerous smaller isl ...

in 1944; and Leyte-Samar Naval Base at

Leyte Leyte ( ) is an island in the Visayas group of islands in the Philippines. It is eighth-largest and sixth-most populous island in the Philippines, with a total population of 2,626,970 as of 2020 census. Since the accessibility of land has been ...

Philippine Islands The Philippines, officially the Republic of the Philippines, is an Archipelagic state, archipelagic country in Southeast Asia. Located in the western Pacific Ocean, it consists of List of islands of the Philippines, 7,641 islands, with a tot ...

, 1945. During these two years, the 104th completed numerous land based construction projects ranging from an airfield on

Los Negros Island Los Negros Island is the third largest of the Admiralty Islands. It is significant because it contains the main airport of Manus Province on its eastern coastline, at Momote. It is connected to Lorengau, the capital of the province, on Manus ...

, in the Admiralties, to

Naval Air Station Cubi Point U.S. Naval Air Station Cubi Point was a United States Navy aerial facility located at the edge of Naval Base Subic Bay and abutting the Bataan Peninsula in the Philippines. When the base closed, the air station became Subic Bay International ...

on island of Leyte in the Philippines. The battalion was eventually deactivated in Dec 1945. In January 1947, the 104th was reactivated and first began their Amphibious mission when the unit was tasked with "the assembly and placement of pontoon structures, beach rehabilitation, harbor development, salvage, and training of reservist in these operations". In October 1950, it was recognized by the

Chief of Naval Operations The chief of naval operations (CNO) is the highest-ranking officer of the United States Navy. The position is a statutory office () held by an Admiral (United States), admiral who is a military adviser and deputy to the United States Secretary ...

Admiral Admiral is one of the highest ranks in many navies. In the Commonwealth nations and the United States, a "full" admiral is equivalent to a "full" general in the army or the air force. Admiral is ranked above vice admiral and below admiral of ...

Forrest Sherman Forrest Percival Sherman (October 30, 1896 – July 22, 1951) was an admiral in the United States Navy and the youngest person to serve as Chief of Naval Operations until Admiral Elmo Zumwalt in 1970. The and the airfield at Naval Air Stat ...

, that the 104th and 105th NCBs had specialized capabilities that separated them from the other Naval Construction Battalions and were re-designated Amphibious Construction Battalion One and Two. Korean War – Amphibious Construction Battalion ONE Yo Do Island ACB 1 refueling Corsairs

During the Korean War several detachments were deployed to the Western Pacific in support of amphibious operations. In the September 1950, invasion of

Inchon Incheon is a city located in northwestern South Korea, bordering Seoul and Gyeonggi Province to the east. Inhabited since the Neolithic, Incheon was home to just 4,700 people when it became an international port in 1883. As of February 2020, ...

a pontoon causeway was brought into Inchon Harbor on D-Day plus 1 to be used a tide level landing.

General A general officer is an Officer (armed forces), officer of high rank in the army, armies, and in some nations' air force, air and space forces, marines or naval infantry. In some usages, the term "general officer" refers to a rank above colone ...

Douglas MacArthur Douglas MacArthur (26 January 18805 April 1964) was an American general who served as a top commander during World War II and the Korean War, achieving the rank of General of the Army (United States), General of the Army. He served with dis ...

came ashore over this pier on D plus 2. A month after 15 September 1950, landing at Inchon, ACB-1 moved to the east coast of Korea and again supported the

1st Marine Division The 1st Marine Division (1st MARDIV) is a Marine (military), Marine Division (military), division of the United States Marine Corps headquartered at Marine Corps Base Camp Pendleton, California. It is the ground combat element of the I Marine E ...

. This time they landed at the port city of

Wonsan Wonsan (), previously known as Wonsanjin (), is a port city and naval base located in Kangwon Province (North Korea), Kangwon Province, North Korea, along the eastern side of the Korean Peninsula, on the Sea of Japan and the provincial capital. ...

as part of the 1st Marine Division's shift from the Inchon-Seoul area to the northeast coast of Korea. While the Marines moved north to positions in the

Chosin Reservoir The Battle of Chosin Reservoir, also known as the Chosin Reservoir Campaign or the Battle of Lake Changjin (), was an important battle in the Korean War. The name "Chosin" is derived from the Japanese pronunciation "''Chōshin'', instead of th ...

area, the Seabees built piers and unloaded ships. *On 21 September 1950 a detachment from ACB 1 went into Seabee history. Aerial reconnaissance reported eight locomotives trapped by broken rail lines in the Yong Dong Po switch yard eight miles North of Inchon. The 10 Seabees, led UT Chief Bloomer, volunteered to attempt to liberate the engines from behind enemy lines. Adjacent to the switch yard was a Kirin Beer Brewery where the Seabees liberated cases of beer to be returned to the South also. They fired the engines and repaired the rails as they went returning to American lines. UTC Donald T. Bloomer, CM1 Welton N. Horn and CM2 Gordon K. Barnett received a letter of commendation with a ribbon and the combat "V" from the Admiral of the 7th Fleet for bravery in the exploit. The engines were turned over to the U.S. Army Transportation Corps. Operation Crippled Chick: The assignment to build the emergency landing strip behind enemy lines on Yo Do island, fell to ACB-1s Detachment George. Led by Lt. T.E. Rowe, Detachment George was composed of one warrant machinist, six chief petty officers and 69 Seabee enlisted men. Six of these Seabees had landed at Inchon two years earlier. The seabees named the runway Briscoe Field for the Commander of the fleet Admiral Robert P. Briscoe Vietnam ACB 1 was the first CB to deploy to Vietnam as a component of Task Force 90 " Passage to Freedom" in 1954. That year an agreement was reached in

Geneva Geneva ( , ; ) ; ; . is the List of cities in Switzerland, second-most populous city in Switzerland and the most populous in French-speaking Romandy. Situated in the southwest of the country, where the Rhône exits Lake Geneva, it is the ca ...

recognizing the

Communist Communism () is a sociopolitical, philosophical, and economic ideology within the socialist movement, whose goal is the creation of a communist society, a socioeconomic order centered on common ownership of the means of production, di ...

government of

North Vietnam North Vietnam, officially the Democratic Republic of Vietnam (DRV; ; VNDCCH), was a country in Southeast Asia from 1945 to 1976, with sovereignty fully recognized in 1954 Geneva Conference, 1954. A member of the communist Eastern Bloc, it o ...

which allowed for people residing in the North to move South before 15 May 1955. Both ACBs were assigned to TF-90. Nine years later, in 1964 ACB 1 would return as the first CB in the

Vietnam War The Vietnam War (1 November 1955 – 30 April 1975) was an armed conflict in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia fought between North Vietnam (Democratic Republic of Vietnam) and South Vietnam (Republic of Vietnam) and their allies. North Vietnam w ...

. Gulf War – Somalia – Persian Gulf In August 1990, PHIBCB ONE was the first Naval Construction Force (NCF) unit to deploy to

Saudi Arabia Saudi Arabia, officially the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA), is a country in West Asia. Located in the centre of the Middle East, it covers the bulk of the Arabian Peninsula and has a land area of about , making it the List of Asian countries ...

in support of

Operation Desert Shield , combatant2 = , commander1 = , commander2 = , strength1 = Over 950,000 soldiers3,113 tanks1,800 aircraft2,200 artillery systems , page = https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/GAOREPORTS-PEMD-96- ...

. The Battalion assisted in the successful offload of the ships from Maritime Prepositioning Squadron TWO and Maritime Prepositioning Squadron THREE in support of the First Marine Expeditionary Force and provided some limited technical support to other joint units operating in the area. On 10 December 1992, ACB-1 arrived at

Mogadishu Mogadishu, locally known as Xamar or Hamar, is the capital and List of cities in Somalia by population, most populous city of Somalia. The city has served as an important port connecting traders across the Indian Ocean for millennia and has ...

as part of the Naval Support Element in

Somalia Somalia, officially the Federal Republic of Somalia, is the easternmost country in continental Africa. The country is located in the Horn of Africa and is bordered by Ethiopia to the west, Djibouti to the northwest, Kenya to the southwest, th ...

. Within a short time ACB-1 unloaded five of the Marines' Maritime Pre-positioning Force ships, refurbished the port, and provided fuel and water for military forces in Somalia. In August 1994 and again in August 1995, the command deployed the Offload Preparation Party (OPP) for Maritime Prepositioning Squadron TWO in support of

Operation Vigilant Warrior Operation Vigilant Warrior () was a military operation from 8 October 1994 to 15 December 1994 by the United States in response to two divisions of Iraqi Republican Guard troops moving toward the Kuwaiti border. A quick response by U.S. preside ...

and

Operation Vigilant Sentinel Operation Vigilant Sentinel was a response to Saddam Hussein advance of its military forces on the border with Kuwait. The United States deployed the 74th Air Control Squadron to Kuwait on August 24, 1995. The specific battle management functions ...

in the

Persian Gulf The Persian Gulf, sometimes called the Arabian Gulf, is a Mediterranean seas, mediterranean sea in West Asia. The body of water is an extension of the Arabian Sea and the larger Indian Ocean located between Iran and the Arabian Peninsula.Un ...

due to the threat of resurgence of Iraqi aggression. In each case the personnel returned home after a couple months but were in a 48hr standby until March 1996. Iraq War The Battalion was the first Naval Construction Force unit to deploy during

. Most recently, in January 2003, ACB-1/2 was deployed to

Kuwait Naval Base Mohammed Al-Ahmad Kuwait Naval Base is a Kuwaiti Navy base on the eastern coast of Kuwait. It is named after Mohammed Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah, the first Defense Minister of Kuwait. The base is also used by the United States Army, Navy and Coast ...

, Kuwait in support of

Operation Enduring Freedom Operation Enduring Freedom (OEF) was the official name used by the U.S. government for both the first stage (2001–2014) of the War in Afghanistan (2001–2021) and the larger-scale Global War on Terrorism. On 7 October 2001, in response ...

and

Operation Iraqi Freedom The Iraq War (), also referred to as the Second Gulf War, was a prolonged conflict in Iraq lasting from 2003 to 2011. It began with the invasion by a United States-led coalition, which resulted in the overthrow of the Ba'athist governm ...

. Moving over of cargo, on nine

C-5 Galaxy The Lockheed C-5 Galaxy is a large military transport aircraft designed and built by Lockheed, and now maintained and upgraded by its successor, Lockheed Martin. It provides the United States Air Force (USAF) with a heavy intercontinental-rang ...

aircraft, the PHIBs constructed the largest Logistics Support Area (LSA) in ACB history, housing over 4,500 personnel. Additionally, ACBs were instrumental with the complete download of 13 MPF ships encompassing three MPSRONs. ELCAS-M was also deployed to move thousands of ammo containers from ship to shore. A small detachment from ACB-1 also moved forward in Iraq to assist the NMCBs with the anchoring of a floating bridge. In 2005 ACB 1 took part in the U.S. military's

Operation Unified Assistance Operation Unified Assistance was the American military's humanitarian response to the 2004 Indian Ocean earthquake and tsunami. On 28 December 2004, elements of the Combined Support Force were deployed to U-Tapao International Airport in Thaila ...

response to the

Indian Ocean tsunami On 26 December 2004, at 07:58:53 local time (UTC+7), a major earthquake with a magnitude of 9.2–9.3 struck with an epicentre off the west coast of Aceh in northern Sumatra, Indonesia. The undersea megathrust earthquake, known in the scient ...

Unit Awards

In recognition of outstanding services rendered in the Korean War, personnel of the Battalion received three

Bronze Stars The Bronze Star Medal (BSM) is a United States Armed Forces decoration awarded to members of the United States Armed Forces for either heroic achievement, heroic service, meritorious achievement, or meritorious service in a combat zone. Wh ...

, eight Navy Commendations with Combat "V"s, the Presidential Unit Citation, the

Korean Presidential Unit Citation The Presidential Unit Citation () is a military unit award of the government of Republic of Korea that may be presented to South Korean and foreign military units for outstanding performance in defense of the Republic of Korea. In recognition of a ...

, and numerous letters of recognition for meritorious services. During the Vietnam War, the Battalion was awarded the

Navy Expeditionary Medal The Navy Expeditionary Medal is a military award of the United States Navy which was established in August 1936. Award criteria The General Orders of the Department of the Navy which established the medal states, "The medal will be awarded to t ...

, the

Vietnam Service Medal The Vietnam Service Medal was a military award of the United States Armed Forces established on 8 July 1965 by order of President Lyndon B. Johnson. The medal is awarded to recognize service during the Vietnam War by all members of the U.S. ...

, and the

Meritorious Unit Commendation The Meritorious Unit Commendation (MUC; pronounced ''muck'') is a mid-level unit award of the United States Armed Forces. The U.S. Army awards units the Army MUC for exceptionally meritorious conduct in performance of outstanding achievement or ...

. Additionally, the command was awarded a

Secretary of the Navy The Secretary of the Navy (SECNAV) is a statutory officer () and the head (chief executive officer) of the Department of the Navy, a military department within the United States Department of Defense. On March 25, 2025, John Phelan was confirm ...

John Howard Dalton John Howard Dalton (born December 13, 1941) is an American politician and investor. Dalton was Secretary of the Navy from July 22, 1993, to November 16, 1998. Education and Navy service Dalton attended Louisiana State University for a year befo ...

, Letter of Commendation for meritorious service from 1994 to 1996. Unit awards in order of precedence: * United States Navy Presidential Unit Citation ribbon

United States Navy Presidential Unit Citation ribbon

Presidential Unit Citation KOREA *

Defense Superior Service Medal The Defense Superior Service Medal (DSSM) is a military decoration of the United States Department of Defense, which is presented to United States Armed Forces service members who perform superior meritorious service in a position of significant ...

Navy Unit Commendation The Navy Unit Commendation (NUC) is a United States Navy and United States Coast Guard unit award that was established by order of the Secretary of the Navy James Forrestal on 18 December 1944. History Navy A navy, naval force, military m ...

with V (8) KOREA *

Navy Meritorious Unit Commendation ribbon

Navy Meritorious Unit Commendation The Meritorious Unit Commendation (MUC; pronounced ''muck'') is a mid-level unit award of the United States Armed Forces. The U.S. Army awards units the Army MUC for exceptionally meritorious conduct in performance of outstanding achievement or ...

Desert Storm * Korean Presidential Unit Citation

Republic of Korea Presidential Unit Citation The Presidential Unit Citation () is a military unit award of the government of Republic of Korea that may be presented to South Korean and foreign military units for outstanding performance in defense of the Republic of Korea. In recognition of a ...

Vietnam Presidential Unit Citation The Vietnam Presidential Unit Citation () was a military unit award established by the State of Vietnam (1949–1955) as the State of Vietnam Friendship Ribbon on August 15, 1950. The Vietnam Presidential Unit Citation is considered obsolete sinc ...

1955 Operation Passage to Freedom Campaign and Service Awards *

Asiatic-Pacific Campaign Medal (104 NCB) *

Philippine Liberation Medal The Philippine Liberation Medal is a military award of the Republic of the Philippines which was created by an order of Commonwealth Army of the Philippines Headquarters on December 20, 1944, and was issued as the Philippine Liberation Ribbon. Th ...

(104 NCB) * World War II Victory Medal ribbon

World War II Victory Medal The World War II Victory Medal was a service medal of the United States military which was established by an Act of Congress on 6 July 1945 (Public Law 135, 79th Congress) and promulgated by Section V, War Department Bulletin 12, 1945. Histo ...

(104 NCB) *

Korean Service Medal The Korean Service Medal (KSM) was a military award for service in the United States Armed Forces and was established November 8, 1950, by executive order of President Harry Truman. The Korean Service Medal is the primary US military award for ...

(3) *

KOREA *

Vietnam Campaign Medal The Republic of Vietnam Campaign Medal, also known as the Vietnam Campaign Medal (), is a South Vietnamese military campaign medal which was created in 1949 and awarded during the First Indochina War. During the Vietnam War (Second Indochina War ...

Humanitarian Service Medal The Humanitarian Service Medal (HSM) is a military service medal of the United States Armed Forces which was created on January 19, 1977 by President Gerald Ford under . The medal may be awarded to members of the United States military (incl ...

– Det A1-81, 1981 Boat people *

Southwest Asia Service Medal The Southwest Asia Service Medal (SASM or SWASM) was a military award of the United States Armed Forces which was created by order of President George H.W. Bush on March 12, 1991. The award is intended to recognize those military service member ...

Kuwait Liberation Medal (Saudi Arabia) The Naut Tahrir al-Kuwait () (Medal for the Liberation of Kuwait) was instituted by King Fahd ibn Abdulaziz of Saudi Arabia for service during the Liberation of Kuwait campaign. Background The Saudi Arabian version of the Kuwait Liberation Me ...

Kuwait Liberation Medal (Kuwait) The Kuwait Liberation Medal ( ''Wisām al-Taḥrīr'', , ) is a medal created in 1994 that was issued by the government of Kuwait to both local and foreign military personnel who served in the Gulf War's "Liberation of Kuwait" campaign phase of 1 ...

–

2004List of Award Abbreviations, Chief of Naval Operations, 2000 Navy Pentagon, Washington, D.C. 2035

References

External links

{{Commons category, Amphibious Construction Battalion 1
ACB-1
website
NAVDOCKS-100, January 1944, U.S. Naval Construction Battalion Administration Manual
search "deployment completion reports" Seabees Seabee units and formations 1943 establishments in Virginia Military units and formations of the United States in the Iraq War Military units and formations of the United States in the War in Afghanistan (2001–2021) Amphibious units and formations of the United States Navy

Mission

History

Unit Awards

See also

References

Further reading

External links