a new twist to a widening tale of ethical lapses in the military, the U.S. Navy is investigating cheating allegations against about one-fifth of its trainers at a school for naval nuclear power reactor operators.
It is the second exam-cheating scandal to hit the military this year, on top of a series of disclosures in recent months of ethical lapses at all ranks in the military as it transitions from more than a decade of war-fighting.
Unlike the air force cheating probe that has implicated nearly 100 officers responsible for land-based nuclear missiles that stand ready for short-notice launch, those implicated in the navy investigation have no responsibility for nuclear weapons.
The navy said its implicated sailors are accused of having cheated on written tests they must pass to be certified as instructors at a nuclear propulsion school at Charleston, South Carolina. The navy uses two nuclear reactors there to train sailors for duty aboard any of dozens of submarines and aircraft carriers around the world whose onboard reactors provide propulsion. They are not part of any weapons systems.
The accused sailors had previously undergone reactor operations training at Charleston before deploying aboard a nuclear-powered vessel. In the normal course of career moves, they returned to Charleston to serve as instructors, for which they have to pass requalification exams.
Adm. John Richardson, director of the navy’s nuclear propulsion program, said an undisclosed number of senior sailors are alleged to have provided test information to their peers.
http://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2014/02/05/world/u-s-navy-investigating-sailors-over-nuclear-exam-cheating-allegations/#.UvR-DtrTmUk
