USS Parche is recognized as the most decorated ship in U.S. Navy history.
Parche was a Sturgeon-class nuclear attack submarine commissioned in 1974. Much of its operational history remains classified, but it is widely associated with intelligence-gathering missions during the Cold War and afterward. The submarine received an exceptional number of awards for those missions.
Its decorations included multiple Presidential Unit Citations and Navy Unit Commendations, along with individual awards for crew members. Parche was repeatedly modified to support specialized reconnaissance work, making it very different from a standard attack submarine.
The title most decorated ship is sometimes mistakenly attributed to famous surface warships such as USS Enterprise or USS Missouri. Parche’s distinction reflects sustained classified service rather than a single celebrated battle. The submarine was decommissioned in 2005 and later dismantled.