The President of the United States of America takes pleasure in presenting the Legion of Merit to Commander August A. Ebel, United States Navy, for exceptionally meritorious conduct in the performance of outstanding services to the Government of the United States from 30 December 1955 to 20 July 1960 as Head of the Navigation Branch, Special Projects Office. Responsible for research, design, development, test, and evaluation of the navigation subsystem of the Fleet Ballistic Missile System, Commander Ebel made a distinctive contribution toward equipping the United States and the free world with the Fleet Ballistic Missile Weapons System as a vital extension of sea power.