Feb. 20 (UPI) — The officer in charge of the USS Harry S. Truman has been relieved of his duties after a collision with a cargo ship near the Suez Canal, the Navy said Thursday.
Capt. Dave Snowden was relieved of his duties after the Navy said it had lost confidence in his ability to safely command the ship.
“The U.S. Navy holds commanding officers to the highest standard and takes action to hold them accountable when those standards are not met. Naval leaders are entrusted with significant responsibilities to their sailors and their ships,” Navy statement reported by Stars and Stripes said.
Snowden had been the Nimitz class aircraft carrier’s commanding officer since the end of 2023, the military said.
Capt. Christopher Hill, who was commanding officer of the USS Dwight D. Eisenhower and also helmed it during a nine-month extended deployment last year in the Middle East, will serve temporarily as the Truman’s commanding officer, the Navy said.
The Eisenhower is currently undergoing routine maintenance, which freed Hill up to command the Truman.
The Truman was involved in a late night collision with the merchant vessel Besiktas-M in a highly trafficked area near the Suez Canal on February 12th that left the high profile aircraft carrie with scrapes and gashes, as well a hole in the hull above the waterline.
The carrier was en route from the Mediterranean Sea to the Red Sea when the collision happened. There were no injuries or flooding, a Navy spokesperson said.
Its propulsion system was not damaged and there were no injuries reported. It is currently undergoing a complete structural assessment Naval Support Activity Souda Bay in Greece.
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