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Navy fires another commanding officer, the 18th this year
Stras & Stripes ^
| September 7, 2011
| Matthew M. Burke
Posted on 09/07/2011 7:48:17 PM PDT by Virginia Ridgerunner
The Navy has fired another commanding officer, the 18th this year, surpassing last years mark of 17 with slightly less than four months left to go.
Cmdr. Mark Olson of USS The Sullivans was relieved of his command due to a loss of confidence in his abilities following an Admirals Mast on Wednesday, according to a Navy news release.
Vice Adm. Daniel Holloway, commander of U.S. 2nd Fleet, made the decision after close examination of an incident that occurred Aug. 17 during a gunnery exercise in the Cherry Point Operating Area range, the release said.
Navy officials said inert rounds landed close to a civilian fishing vessel, which was mistaken for a towed target the ship was instructed to engage. The vessel and crew of the fishing vessel were unharmed.
(Excerpt) Read more at stripes.com ...
TOPICS: Foreign Affairs; Government
KEYWORDS: commander; fired; navy
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To: WoofDog123
I dont know what is the historical norm for ad captains getting pulled.
When you figure that the US Navy only has 286 warships in commission at the moment, that is over 6% of their captains that have been relieved for cause in a single year. One in 20 is way to high.
However this may not be some diabolical plot by Obama. You have to remember that due to fleet reduction the US Navy has more admirals that it does ships. So there aren't going to be any promotions for a while unless a slot opens up. When that happens you start to see a problem with the management structure. So they may just be taking the current overpopulation of senior officers as an opportunity to "Clean House". They are badly overstaffed in the top ranks due to the draw down of the fleet and anyone who messes up get relieved so someone else gets the slot.
41
posted on
09/08/2011 3:57:05 AM PDT
by
GonzoGOP
(There are millions of paranoid people in the world and they are all out to get me.)
To: GonzoGOP
When you see this many captains on active duty getting pulled you know that there is a purge going on. "In making the determination to discipline Olson, Holloway found that the skipper failed to follow established safety procedures during the exercise."
Removing a CO who almost shot up a civilian fishing boat out of carelessness is not a purge. It's removing someone who probably should not have been in command in the first place.
42
posted on
09/08/2011 4:06:03 AM PDT
by
SoJoCo
To: Dick Bachert
Respectfully, I really dislike that top painting. The cruiser represented at the top is NOT the USS Juneau, which was an Atlanta-class light anti-aircraft cruiser (so had three dual 5” turrets forward, rather than the two triple 8” turrets shown on the ship in the painting).
To: SoJoCo
Removing a CO who almost shot up a civilian fishing boat out of carelessness is not a purge. It's removing someone who probably should not have been in command in the first place.
See my post 41. The USN currently has an excess of command grade officers. They might just be purging the screw ups. A purge, if done for the right reasons, isn't always a bad thing. Purges for political reasons are bad and usually screw up the service for years to come. Purging for performance based reasons can be a good thing, and improve the fleet in a Darwinian manner. Think SEAL training where 2/3 of the class gets purged out.
44
posted on
09/08/2011 6:37:45 AM PDT
by
GonzoGOP
(There are millions of paranoid people in the world and they are all out to get me.)
To: Dick Bachert
Thank you for your post on the Sullivan brothers. I'd get shivers down my spine and a tear in my eye if I saw U.S.S. The Sullivans.
I first learned about them as an insomniatic youth, watching The Fighting Sullivans (1944) on television in the middle of the night.
It's interesting for a war movie, in that almost all of the movie concentrates on the boys as they grow up together and become young men.
The deaths of the Sullivans partly inspired "Saving Private Ryan," and is the subject of the song "Sullivan" by the band Caroline's Spine. The band was offered a chance to play the song on the U.S.S. Enterprise in 1998.
Finally, there's a Sullivan Brothers Iowa Veterans Museum in Waterloo, Iowa.
45
posted on
09/08/2011 7:12:22 AM PDT
by
Scoutmaster
(You knew the job was dangerous when you took it, Fred.)
To: Scoutmaster
If you've never heard the acoustic version of "Sullivan", you're missing out....
"we regret to inform you that all your sons have passed away...all five, five, five...change your blue stars to gold"
46
posted on
09/08/2011 7:20:27 AM PDT
by
Axeslinger
(Where has my country gone?)
To: MSF BU
“Surely the new emphasis on embracing the Sodomy will help though?”
It’s sure to make Captain’s Mast more interesting...
47
posted on
09/08/2011 7:31:56 AM PDT
by
PLMerite
(Shut the Beyotch Down! Burn, baby, burn!)
To: Axeslinger
If you've never heard the acoustic version of "Sullivan", you're missing out..Thanks. Is it on any of their albums?
I found this version as background on a student video project:
Acoustic Version in Video Project
48
posted on
09/08/2011 7:42:05 AM PDT
by
Scoutmaster
(You knew the job was dangerous when you took it, Fred.)
To: Scoutmaster
You Tube's blocked here at work, so I'll have to check that out later. But thanks in advance.
I don't think it's on any of their albums. The one I've got is from a radio interview where they played the song live in the studio.
I can't listen to that song without getting goosebumps.
49
posted on
09/08/2011 8:21:08 AM PDT
by
Axeslinger
(Where has my country gone?)
To: tanknetter
I don’t know who created that tribute to these brave boys but I’m sure we all forgive him or her for that technical error.
Thanks for the information.
50
posted on
09/08/2011 9:24:24 AM PDT
by
Dick Bachert
(The 2012 election is coming. Seems we have MORE TRASH TO REMOVE!)
To: VanShuyten
To: Scoutmaster
Thank you and, yes, I had those same shivers down my spine in Nassau that morning. I threw the boat a salute when she shoved off and a couple of the yuppies on deck with me looked at me a bit strangely and moved away.
52
posted on
09/08/2011 9:28:13 AM PDT
by
Dick Bachert
(The 2012 election is coming. Seems we have MORE TRASH TO REMOVE!)
To: SoJoCo
Removing a CO who almost shot up a civilian fishing boat out of carelessness is not a purge. It's removing someone who probably should not have been in command in the first place. He might have otherwise been a good CO, and this was just the result of a stupid mistake on someone else's part. Or, it might have been his own screw-up. But whatever the case, the Navy always has held its captains to a "buck stops here" standard, holding them accountable for end results even if the error was committed below them. Your ship accidentally shells a civilian ship, and you're going to be toast if that gets out.
To: dixiechick2000
Thank you for your comments and thank your guy for his service.
And, yes, the new Navy recruitment spots on TV speak volumes. Their tagline “The US Navy: A global force for good” makes me want to hurl.
I thought the job of the military was to go in, kick ass and bust enough of the enemy’s stuff to make them quit the fight then come home. Now we’re NATION BUILDING in places where they HATE US, have no idea what that means and we have to PAY THEM to HELP. And when we leave, they’ll just resume killing each other and destroying whatever we’ve left behind for them.
Sad indeed...
54
posted on
09/08/2011 9:33:19 AM PDT
by
Dick Bachert
(The 2012 election is coming. Seems we have MORE TRASH TO REMOVE!)
To: VikingMom
The frantic and vitriolic attacks from the other side tell me that we’re winning.
55
posted on
09/08/2011 9:37:03 AM PDT
by
Dick Bachert
(The 2012 election is coming. Seems we have MORE TRASH TO REMOVE!)
To: Virginia Ridgerunner
56
posted on
09/08/2011 9:50:14 AM PDT
by
A. Patriot
(Have we lost our Republic? Do the majority of Americans care?)
To: PLMerite
The Navy is still paying the price for Richard Danzig.
57
posted on
09/08/2011 10:07:42 AM PDT
by
MSF BU
(YR'S Please Support our troops: JOIN THEM!)
To: VanShuyten
He did TWO bad things here. First, he fired on a civilian ship. Second, he fired on a ship that he thought was the target and DIDNT hit it.Usually with a towed target the object is not to hit it, but offset an intentional amount. Targets cost money and they are meant to be used multiple times. The inexcusable eff-up was firing on the wrong target, not "missing" it.
58
posted on
09/08/2011 7:43:18 PM PDT
by
GATOR NAVY
("The bigger the government, the smaller the citizen." -Dennis Prager)
To: tanknetter; Dick Bachert
Respectfully, I really dislike that top painting. The cruiser represented at the top is NOT the USS Juneau, which was an Atlanta-class light anti-aircraft cruiser (so had three dual 5 turrets forward, rather than the two triple 8 turrets shown on the ship in the painting).I hate to be picky but I noticed that too. Assuming that this is depicting the Naval Battle of Guadalcanal, the ship in the painting is USS SAN FRANCISCO (CA-38).
59
posted on
09/08/2011 8:20:31 PM PDT
by
GATOR NAVY
("The bigger the government, the smaller the citizen." -Dennis Prager)
To: GATOR NAVY
Thank you for your clarification. Believe it or not, I’ve never actually been a commander on a ship. Nice to know the details!
60
posted on
09/08/2011 9:40:06 PM PDT
by
VanShuyten
("a shadow...draped nobly in the folds of a gorgeous eloquence.")
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