President and Chairman of the Central Military Commission Hu Jintao has signed an order of commendation to honor five military units and five individuals for their outstanding service.

According to the citation, an independent battalion of the Garze Military Sub-command in southwest province of Sichuan was awarded the honorary title of "Model Battalion for Dedication to Missions" for its heroic performance.

The battalion made a great sacrifice in fighting a mountain fire in Sichuan on Dec. 5, 2010, when 15 soldiers lost their lives while attempting to rescue civilians trapped within the fire.

Since it was founded in 1989, the battalion has completed more than 50 important military missions, including the rescue and relief work after the devastating earthquakes in Wenchuan and Yushu.

A flight training regiment under the People's Liberation Army (PLA)'s Army Aviation Academy, an engineer regiment of the PLA's Beijing Military Area Command, and a special forces unit of the Jinan Military Area Command were awarded first-class merit citations.

An infantry brigade of Lanzhou Military Area Command was awarded the second-class merit citation.

Five individuals, including military strategist Chen Zhou, were awarded first-class and second-class merit citations for making outstanding contributions to scientific research.