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Not sure what the confusion is about regarding the rank-position thing. The chain-of-command is very clear for US ships, rank sometimes, but not always, correlates to that chain. In this case, both CO and XO or O5, but it is very clear who the CO is.
Most ships have an O5 as the CO. The XO usually comes aboard as an O4, but often their advancement to O5 comes while in this position. The O5 CO will usually come directly from an XO billet, or come from a shore billet having been a previous XO.
For O6 commands, I can only off the top of my head remember carriers and SSGNs having an O6 as the CO. Not sure about cariers, but the SSGN COs already had a previous at-sea command as an O5.
Only going off what I have read, the CO and OOD are done. As for being reduced in rank, that will be dependent on the level of negligence, if any, involved. Who every else will be determined after the investigation.
Don't cruisers also have an O6 as CO? Battleships (back when they were still in commission) also had an O6 as CO ... actually I think most Navy ships had O6's as COs until fairly recently ... nowadays (as you said) it's an O5 slot for most vessels. I think the Cyclone class patrol ships have O4's as COs though.
One more thing, even if radar systems were down wouldn't they still have had actual watchstanders with binoculars? Surely they would have seen this freighter coming at them ...
Just curious, did anyone think about the SS Edmund Fitzgerald (1975), when they heard to news about the USS Fitzgerald? I know I did. Both terrible tragedies.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/SS_Edmund_Fitzgerald Although Fitzgerald had reported being in difficulty earlier, no distress signals were sent before she sank; Captain McSorley's last message to Anderson said, "We are holding our own." Her crew of 29 perished, and no bodies were recovered. The exact cause of the sinking remains unknown, though many books, studies, and expeditions have examined it. Fitzgerald might have fallen victim to the high waves of the storm, suffered structural failure, been swamped with water entering through her cargo hatches or deck, experienced topside damage, or shoaled in a shallow part of Lake Superior.
Also: Thank you guys for explaining (in detail) about this recent tragedy. I hope they find the 7 men and that they are okay.
Don't cruisers also have an O6 as CO? Battleships (back when they were still in commission) also had an O6 as CO ... actually I think most Navy ships had O6's as COs until fairly recently ... nowadays (as you said) it's an O5 slot for most vessels. I think the Cyclone class patrol ships have O4's as COs though.
One more thing, even if radar systems were down wouldn't they still have had actual watchstanders with binoculars? Surely they would have seen this freighter coming at them ...
Yes, cruisers have an O6 as the CO, forgot about them.
They did away with O6 as a CO billet over time, when I got to the SSBN fleet in the 90's, they already started having O5 as the CO when it was an O6 throughout the 80's. But SSGNs have an O6; do not know if it is designated, or it happens to be for people who have already had an at-sea command, who most likely would be an O6 when returning to sea.
The DD and any ship can navigate with aid of equipment. Unless there was reduced visibility, which seems this was not the case, they had to be visually aware of the cargo ship, and can navigate off of just this if they needed to.
My son says he is pretty sure the berthing compartments being referred to in the news are in that collision area below the waterline. One is the female berthing and one is the forward berthing. At 2:30 AM most would be in their bunks in these spaces. This is so sad and I am praying for the families of these missing sailors.
Last edited by redwood66; 06-17-2017 at 07:01 PM..
As the captain of a vessel that always sails with crew, nothing scares me more than having to answer to the spouses, children, and parents of those aboard my vessel.
The bodies of seven U.S. sailors missing after a Navy destroyer collided with a container ship off Japan were found in flooded berthing compartments, a defense official said.
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