He was awarded the Navy Cross for his actions as navigator of the aircraft carrier USS Franklin after it was severely damaged and set ablaze by a lone Japanese dive bomber on 19 March 1945.

[5] In October 1941, Jurika joined the crew of the newly commissioned aircraft carrier USS Hornet as its flight deck and intelligence officer.

[5] He briefed the participants in the April 1942 Doolittle Raid[8] on the best industrial and military targets in the city, and the best routes to get to them, and instructed them on how to identify themselves to people in China.

[5][12] He was present on the bridge on the morning of 19 March 1945 when the Franklin was severely damaged and set ablaze by a lone Japanese dive bomber.

When the fires reached the magazine, Jurika later recalled, "Whole aircraft engines with propellers attached, debris of all description, including pieces of human bodies were flung high into the air and descended on the general area like hail on a roof.

[5] He felt that the Chifley government failed to appreciate the danger posed by Communism, and was slow to move against a spy ring known to be operating in Australia.

His citation read: Utilizing his extensive knowledge of naval procedures and operations, Captain Jurika supervised the development and implementation of improved joint operating procedures betn Japan Air Defense Force and Naval Units within the Far East which markedly increased defense capabilities in the theater.

The outstanding resourcefulness and sound judgment Captain Jurika applied to the communications phase of these plans resulted in closer co-ordination and increased effectiveness of the different units.

[20] After retiring from the Navy in 1962, he taught political science at Stanford from 1962 to 1964, at the University of Santa Clara from 1964 to 1975, and at the Naval Postgraduate School in Monterey, California, from 1975 to 1986.