MANAMA, Bahrain – The Office of the Chief of Naval Operations recently awarded U.S. Naval Forces Central Command’s Directorate of Logistics and Infrastructure the 2023 Admiral Stan Arthur Award for Logistics and Sustainment Team of the Year.

“This award is only possible because of the amazing Sailors who continue to advance operational logistics and supply chain support for all our naval forces and assets in the 5th Fleet,” said Capt. Marcus Jones, Assistant Chief of Staff for Logistics at NAVCENT.

The Admiral Stan Arthur Award for Logistics Excellence recognizes both military and civilian logisticians who epitomize excellence in the realm of logistics and sustainment planning, representing the top individuals for global naval logistics. The awardees exemplify the importance of logistics to achieving the Navy’s mission and advancing a competitive edge over adversaries.

“This award is distinctly a humbling acknowledgement of the value that the U.S. Navy places on logistics and the profound impact of the work the NAVCENT N4 team has done in support of combat operations in the U.S. Central Command area of responsibility,” said Cmdr. Colin Engels, NAVCENT Logistics Readiness Center Chief. “I have a tremendous amount of pride in our team.”

The NAVCENT team demonstrated exceptional leadership, unparalleled flexibility and tremendous logistics proficiency synchronizing logistics requirements for 15 task forces, 10 subordinate units, the Dwight D. Eisenhower Carrier Strike Group, and USS Bataan Amphibious Readiness Group by rapidly developing a full transportation plan and establishing crucial supply nodes across the U.S. Central Command area of responsibility.

“The work we put in over the last year had immediate real-world impacts in a combat environment and the team repeatedly demonstrated their ability to quickly think outside the box to solve a myriad of complex logistics challenges,” said Lt. Cmdr. Joseph Murphy, NAVCENT Force Fuels Officer. “Receiving the Stan Arthur award reinforces the camaraderie of our group and affirms that we are logisticians of the highest caliber.”

The U.S. 5th Fleet area of operations encompasses approximately 2.5 million square miles of water space and includes the Arabian Gulf, Gulf of Oman, Red Sea, parts of the Indian Ocean and three critical choke points at the Strait of Hormuz, Suez Canal and Strait of Bab al-Mandeb.