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Not sure if they still do it, but in the old days anytime a CO lost a ship, no matter what the circumstances, there was a courts martial. Often it was pro-forma, especially in wartime. But the Navy did not want anybody thinking the loss of a ship would be treated lightly.

The obvious exception being Lt. J.G. John F. Kennedy, although I suppose very few skippers in the Navy (then and now) have Joe Kennedy's connections.

It is a famous story about Admiral Chester Nimitz, who, as a young LTJG was put in command of a rickety destroyer (USS Decatur) out in the Philippines and ran her aground. After trying furiously to free her without success, a passing vessel was able to pull him off.

When he reached port, he dutifully reported the incident, and was subjected to a court martial which found him guilty, but he successfully argued that the charts were obsolete and that, as a destroyer captain, he was obligated to operate his ship aggressively.

That got him off with a mild letter of reprimand that took those factors into account, and his career blossomed.

Later, as the Captain of a cruiser approaching a pier, he took the helm from a young OOD to bring the vessel in himself and very nearly smashed into the dock.

Crestfallen, he turned to the young officer and said (I am paraphrasing, I don’t remember the wording): “Lt. Jones, tell me what I did wrong.”

The young officer gulped then said “Sir, you didn’t judge the wind correctly, you didn’t adjust for the current, you came in at too sharp an angle and with too much speed.”

Capt. Nimitz fixed his blue eyes on the young officer and said “That’s right. When you bring a ship in, never forget what I did wrong.”

It was said that, through his career, he always tried to be fair in various judgments, and one of his favorite sayings was “Every dog deserves a second bite.”

Gotta love that man. No wonder people served so hard and faithfully for him.