Posted on 07/28/2008 8:19:12 PM PDT by GATOR NAVY
SAN DIEGO – The skipper of the San Diego-based Pearl Harbor has been relieved of command after the amphibious landing-dock ship ran aground last week in the Persian Gulf, Navy officials said Monday.
Cmdr. Xavier Valverde has been reassigned to the staff of the Naval Forces Central Command in Bahrain while the July 21 incident is investigated.
The Pearl Harbor apparently hit a shoal while conducting a well-deck drill off the coast of Kuwait, a Navy spokeswoman said. The ship backed off the sand bar without sustaining damage.
Valverde, a 26-year Navy veteran, took command of the Pearl Harbor in November. He was relieved over the weekend by Rear. Adm. Kendall Card, commander of Expeditionary Strike Group 3.
Capt. Mike Slotsky, deputy commodore of Destroyer Squadron 9 in Everett, Wash., will oversee the ship temporarily.
The Pearl Harbor left San Diego on May 4 as part of the Peleliu amphibious assault group, which has been operating in the Persian Gulf for about a month.
Well, a 4-star hotel where room service is provided by a machinist.
These ships not only carry cargo and landing craft, but provide repair facilities near-shore or off-shore for damaged assets in or near the landing zone.
Thanks for the ping!
Thank you very much for the explaination.
Cosmetic damage; give it a wax job ;o)
(those blue tarps sure come in handy when you blow the hull at depth...)
Obviously your comment #5 was offered as humor?
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