Posted on 05/24/2022 4:32:15 AM PDT by billorites
The U.S. Navy has released its report into the submerged grounding of the nuclear-powered fast attack submarine USS Connecticut on an uncharted seamount in the South China Sea in October, revealing an “accumulation of unit-level errors” leading up to the incident.
The investigation ultimately determined the grounding was preventable. The submarine’s Commanding Officer, Executive Officer (second in command), and “Chief of the Boat” were previously relieved of their command “due to loss of confidence.”
The USS Connecticut (SSN 22) grounded on an uncharted seamount “while operating submerged in a poorly surveyed area in international waters in the Indo-Pacific region” on October 2, 2021.
Following the incident, USS Connecticut returned to Guam for damage assessments. Although the propulsion plant of USS Connecticut was not impacted, the submarine is expectd to be unavailable for operations “for an extended period of time” due to the damage sustained in the incident.
The incident also resulted in minor injuries to were sustained by eleven crew members.
According to the heavily redacted report, the grounding “resulted from an accumulation of errors and omissions in navigation planning, watchteam execution, and risk management that fell far below U.S. Navy standards.”
“Prudent decision-making and adherence to required procedures in any of these three areas could have prevented the grounding,” the report adds.
The investigation also highlighted specific areas for improvement in the deployment training and certification process, which the Navy is urgently implementing across its Submarine Force. The investigation also includes 28 corrective actions, of which 14 actions are complete, 13 actions are in progress, and one is enduring.
Rear Adm. Christopher J. Cavanaugh, Commander of the U.S. 7th Fleet, further recommends that the Commanding Officer (CO), Executive Officer (XO), Navigator (NAV), Officer of the Deck (OOD), Assistant Navigator (ANAV) face “nonjudicial punishment” for violation of “Dereliction of Duty” and “Improper Hazarding of a Vessel” for negiligence and that the administrative chain of command initiate detachment for cause.
“In implementing these significant improvements, the Navy will become a more effective fighting force. Given the inherently dangerous nature of Naval operations, we cannot become a risk-averse or zero-defect organization, but prioritizing safety will engender a culture of greater attention to detail in operational tasks, enhanced procedural compliance, and a questioning attitude that constantly seeks improvement – which increases the readiness of our forces and the Navy’s lethality in combat,” the Navy said in a statement.
But that is money down the drain anyway until we end the leadership rot in our own military.
ping
This is what happens when you spend your time kicking out people for rejecting illegal Covid vaccines instead of focusing on readiness & training.
But the good news is they got top marks in unit diversity.
“In implementing these significant improvements, the Navy will become a more effective fighting force. ... increases ... the Navy’s lethality in combat,” the Navy said in a statement.
OK, Boomer.
Training and deployment cert should be continuous process. Given the mission a submarine should always be ready for deployment. Refreshers on a specific are for a specific mission - well yeah of course. On my old boat back in the cold war we always did all of that. Course we weren't woke yet - but we started working on it way back then.
“Prudent decision-making and adherence to required procedures in any of these three areas could have prevented the grounding.”
For someone with very little understanding of naval operations, can someone please explain what the Captain could have done to avoid hitting an uncharted sea mount?
You follow known paths...
My wife got a bunch of videos from our local library for me to watch, and one of them was the series “Last Ship”. I didn’t know anything about it and watched the first episode.
Don’t think I’ll watch any more of them.
Think “Love Boat” crossed with “The Omega Man” crossed with “Ice Station Zebra” with a completely woke crew (looks like every culture, color, religion, and sexual orientation is included) that is extremely competent and proficient at everything.
I guess at a fundamental level, woke-ness and competence are like oil and water to me. If you are focusing on woke-ness, you cannot be focusing on competence because woke-ness will ALWAYS trump competence.
I understand the problems the US Navy has with decreasing budgets, extended deployment cycles, and all that goes with that, but...as the Fitzerald, McCain, and Bon Homme Richard fiascos clearly indicate, the rot in our armed forces and the US Navy in particular runs deep...not to mention this.
That said, I can only take their word that it was “Unit Level Failures”, since I have never been a bubblehead and don’t know how all that plays out. And I have never, in my whole life, had any trust in the Naval Investigative Service. Their job is first and foremost to make the Navy look good and find scapegoats, not to improve processes or render justice. Never has been.
Sadly.
My grandson works for Electric Boat in Groton....Very proud of him. But he wants to work for Musk.
Ah, does the pursuit of equity always result in poor outcomes because of lower standards?
That was why I was personally circumspect in my criticism...this happened in the South China Sea, which I have always viewed as a potentially dangerous, congested, and contested area, so in my non-bubblehead mind, they wouldn’t use active sensors to determine a clear path since that would reveal their location.
Thus, hitting an uncharted formation would, in my mind, be a real risk. I guess not, so if any bubbleheads are on this forum (and I know there are a few) any insight would be great.
But the point remains, and many reference that point-there is a huge amount of time, money, and effort being expended by the US Navy in things that have nothing to do with watch standing, damage control, seamanship, or warfighting, and everything to do with BS like LGBTQ and all that goes along with that.
Every second...EVERY SECOND spent on those things is one valuable second NOT being spent on things that count, like... watch standing, damage control, seamanship, or warfighting.
... the grounding “resulted from an accumulation of errors and omissions in navigation planning, watchteam execution, and risk management that fell far below U.S. Navy standards.” \
I didn’t know the Navy still had standards.
I get sending the “O”gangers packing but I fail to see how the Chief of the Boat got canned, unless he was the diving officer on watch & was way below ordered depth when they struck.
Deviating from ordered depth based on overheard talk in the control room will get you court-martialed. Whoever has the conn commands course, depth, & speed, it is NOT the diving officer. The CO, XO, & Navigator can take the conn at any time from their junior by simply issuing a conning (course, speed,rudder, depth, etc.) order while on or about the bridge.
Not embarrassing the political leadership is perhaps the only standard. Of course they could take the old French approach and just keep their ships in port while they clean and paint them and keep them looking pretty.
The scourge of the seas US Navy was ramming supertankers, now they’re having trouble finding the bottom of the ocean.
Bingo!
[“In implementing these significant improvements, the Navy will become a more effective fighting force. Given the inherently dangerous nature of Naval operations, we cannot become a risk-averse or zero-defect organization, but prioritizing safety will engender a culture of greater attention to detail in operational tasks, enhanced procedural compliance, and a questioning attitude that constantly seeks improvement – which increases the readiness of our forces and the Navy’s lethality in combat,” the Navy said in a statement.]
Now that’s a word salad. Saltines? Fresh cracked pepper?
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