Awards
Reich received the Navy Cross three times, the second-highest decoration for valor the United States Navy awards, after the Medal of Honor, for "extraordinary heroism" as commander of the Sealion II from its March 8, 1944 commissioning until relieved by Lieutenant Commander Charles F. Putnam on December 4, 1944. Reich was also twice awarded the Navy Distinguished Service Medal, once awarded the Legion of Merit, and received the Bronze Star .
In 1963 the American Society of Naval Engineers awarded Eli T. Reich the Gold Medal Award for his work on Surface Missile Systems. The Gold Medal Award, has been awarded annually since 1958, and is given to an individual who has made a significant naval engineering contribution in a particular area during the past five years.
"In the field of naval engineering, the nominee must have made a most significant contribution through personal effort, or through the direction of others, during or culminating in the five-year period ending in the current year. Evidence of personal involvement shall be explicitly stated. If, for security reasons, the evidence cannot be publicly disclosed, the statement should be sufficiently specific for recognition of the accomplishment by those qualified to assess it."
In the early 1990s the Naval Academy honored Reich at a "Heroes of WWII" dinner. There is also a "VADM Eli T. Reich Building" named in his honor at Naval Surface Warfare Center Port Hueneme Division (NSWC PHD) (formerly Naval Ship Weapon Systems Engineering Station, or NSWSES) in Port Hueneme, California. This building is one of the station's on site engineering facilities, housing combat system simulators, selected weapon systems and combat systems equipment, and much of the other shipboard equipment for which NSWC PHD is the designated In-Service Engineering Agent (ISEA).
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