Three ship commanders fired in two days, raising questions about Navy's 'zero-error tolerance' culture
by Russ Read
| August 24, 2019 03:30 PM
The second-in-command of a Navy submarine was fired this week, making him the third senior leader of a ship to be dismissed in two days.
Lt. Cmdr. Jonathan Cebik was removed Monday from his position as executive officer of the USS Jimmy Carter over concerns regarding his personal judgment. Two other senior officers were removed for the same thing Tuesday.
Such dismissals are by no means unusual, current and former Navy officers told the Washington Examiner. A 2004 Navy inspector general report found that 78 officers were removed for similar reasons between January 1999 and June 2004, an average of slightly more than one per month.
"If someone were to take and graph these reliefs over time, you would find that they are fairly regular," Bryan McGrath, a Navy contractor and former Navy officer, told the Washington Examiner. "They happen every year, and they tend to happen in little cluster groups. I can't explain that. I don't think anyone can."
McGrath said he served with one of the relieved commanders but declined to specify which.
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https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/policy/defense-national-security/3-ship-commanders-fired-in-2-days-raising-questions-about-navys-zero-error-tolerance-culture
