The U.S. Army Corps Buffalo District named the latest addition to its hydrographic survey fleet after retired Command Sgt. Maj. Micheal L. Buxbaum, U.S. Army.
The ceremony took place on June 23, on the fantail of the cruiser USS Littlerock, which is moored at the Buffalo and Erie County Naval and Military Park.
Buxbaum passed away in his sleep on Nov. 9, 2013, while in Afghanistan, where he was working as a contractor supporting deployed soldiers, a calling that spanned his 33-year career, Corps said.
The addition of the survey vessel BUXBAUM enhances Buffalo District’s ability to support navigation mission with a third survey vessel equipped with a multi-beam sonar system.
The BUXBAUM will also be equipped with a vessel mounted “LIDAR” (light detection and ranging) system. The Optech Ilris 3-D laser scanner has the capability to collect data in a terrestrial (static) mode and in a marine (mobile) mode of operation which allows the Buffalo District to survey offshore breakwater structures from a moving vessel, with fewer field personnel required.
“It is fitting and appropriate that we honor the memory of Command Sergeant Major Buxbaum, a top-ranking noncommissioned officer, by placing his name on this boat,” said Buffalo District Commander Lt. Col. Karl D. Jansen . “Noncommissioned officers are the backbone of our Army who inspire disciplined and honorable service while taking care of those they lead. A few years ago, Buxbaum visited Buffalo District and made it his mission to get out into the field and meet with our surveyors and the crew members of our tugs and derrick boat, dedicated Americans who maintain the Great Lakes Navigation System — which is the backbone of our nation’s industrial might.”