Fourteenth U.S. Navy Commander Relieved of Duty in 2011, Chief Issues Memo

The United States Navy has relieved such a large amount of commanding officers from their duties this year that it has spurred the chief of naval operations to issue an unusual memo to all potential commanders outlining their responsibilities as commander.

The Navy has released 14 commanding officers in 2011 thus far, compared to 17 during all of 2010.  While it’s not the highest rate, which was in 2003 at 26 officers relieved, the chief of naval operations deemed it necessary to issue a memo heavily emphasizing the professional ethics and accountability that comes along with being a commanding officer in the U.S. Navy. 

The most recent incident stems from a squadron commander in Bahrain who was relieved of duty for being drunk.  Navy spokesman Cmdr. Danny Hernandez commented that they are expecting their commanding officers to uphold the highest personal and professional standards, and that alcohol-related incidents are not within the Navy’s expectations. 

The dismissals of 2011 are not all attributed to alcohol, however, with the Navy citing cases including inappropriate personal relationships, mistreating sailors, and failing to properly handle a loaded weapon.  The Navy states it as “loss of confidence in ability to command.”

The memo, issued by Adm. Gary Roughead, clearly stated that included in their responsibilities is that they will be held accountable to the highest standards of conduct. He proclaimed that the three essential principles at the heart of command are authority, responsibility, and accountability, and that with these principles out of balance, effective command is at risk.

A Navy official confirmed that Roughead distributed the 4-page memo because of how wide the variety of reasons was for relieving officers of their command, and not based on any singular event.

The Navy added that the number of commanding officer jobs exceeds 1,500, and that less than 1% of these officers have been relieved since 2005.