The training accident killed eight Marines and one sailor. The former Navy commanding officer of the amphibious transport dock USS Somerset, who was officially censured for a training accident in which eight Marines and one sailor died, will not command an aircraft carrier after all. Navy Capt. John William Kurtz was the Somerset’s captain when an amphibious assault vehicle, or AAV, sank while returning to the ship during a July 30, 2020 training exercise. It was the deadliest training accident involving an AAV in Marine Corps history..... But not long after news broke that Kurtz had been selected to command...