Smacking into civilian ships has become a growing problem for the US Navy, especially in the Pacific Ocean. This could be leading to homicide charges for a pair of ship commanders involved in such incidents, according to the Navy.
The US Navy’s statement says that the commanding officer of the USS John S McCain and the commanding officer of the USS Fitzgerald, two guided missile destroyers, are each facing court-martials, with charges including dereliction of duty, hazarding a vessel, and negligent homicide. Three other Fitzgerald officers are also facing charges.
The USS Fitzgerald collided with a container ship in June, with seven sailors killed. The USS John S McCain hit an oil tanker, killing 10 of the crew and doing an estimated $230 million in damage to the ship.
The incidents raised major concerns about US fleet readiness, with evidence that the vast majority of US ships engaged in active operations do not have a sufficiently trained crew and are often being put out on far more missions than they’d normally be able to handle.
Reminds me of Dilbert: Seagull commander: flies in, craps on everything and leaves.
So are we going to see the Upper reaches of Command, to wit the Pentagon, for forcing Captains to go to sea, without adequately trained men!
How typical… putting lower officers in an impossible situation and punishing them to no end when the dead bodies turn up. Someone will be flogged, and it certainly won’t be whomever gave the order.