Naval Mobile Construction Battalion 11

Naval Mobile Construction Battalion 11
Active1942–1945

1953–1969

2007–present
CountryUnited States
BranchUSN
HomeportConstruction Battalion Center Gulfport
EngagementsWorld War II
Vietnam War
Operation Enduring Freedom
Operation Iraqi Freedom
Commanders
Current
commander		CDR James Angerman
NMCB 11 commissioning (USN)
WWII 11th CB insignia.[1] It is a classic example of late Deco Streamline Moderne design. In 1944 the insignia was revised by the listing of all the deployment sites that was still style sensitive to the original design. Another revision followed adding naval icons around the border. (USN)
Lombrum Point ship repair dock, Los Negros built by 11 NCB (USN)

Naval Mobile Construction Battalion 11 (NMCB 11) is a United States Navy Construction Battalion, otherwise known as a Seabee Battalion, presently home-ported at the Naval Construction Battalion Center (Gulfport, Mississippi). The unit was formed during World War II as the 11th Naval Construction Battalion at Camp Allen on 28 June 1942. On 1 July, she moved to the new Seabee base Camp Bradford. Seabee battalions were numbered sequentially in the order they were stood up. The battalion lost one man during the war to a construction accident. The 11th CB was inactivated on 1 December 1945, at Subic Bay, Philippines.

The unit was reactivated as Mobile Construction Battalion 11 in the fall 1953, only to be decommissioned again in December 1969. However, MCB 11 made four tours in Vietnam. Eleven's fourth Seabee Technical Assistance Team (STAT) was sent to a Special Forces camp near the junction of two jungle routes, one called the Ho Chi Minh trail. It was the main route for the Viet Cong into South Vietnam, and lead to the most decorated group of Seabees in Seabee history. The battalion's 1967 tour exposed the men to the most severe combat the Seabees had seen since World War II. They came under fire 128 times, costing them 12 KIA. There were construction fatalities as well. In addition, the battalion suffered 102 wounded. NMCB 11 had one man make all four tours, getting a ribbon that matches the battalion's battle streamer. The battalion was deactivated in 1969.

Reactivated in 2007, NMCB 11 has since deployed to both Iraq and Afghanistan. It has also undertaken international engagement activities in the Pacific, and supported the relief efforts of Hurricane Sandy. Homeport for NMCB 11 is NCBC Gulfport Mississippi

  1. ^ Naval Construction Battalion Logos, flickr website, U.S. Navy Seabee Museum, Port Hueneme, Ca [1]