The President of the United States of America takes pleasure in presenting the Navy Cross to Lieutenant Commander George Arthur Rood, United States Navy, for distinguished service in the line of his profession in Command of the AL-1 during World War I. While en route from Newport to the Azores his submarine was separated from the escort and other submarines of the squadron, leaving him without a rendezvous. He thereupon proceeded to his destination successfully, assuming the great responsibility of starting a 1,700-mile Atlantic Ocean run in winter weather in a submarine of a class that had never been considered reliable for service of this character.