The Navy on Wednesday removed Vice Adm. Joseph Aucoin, the three-star commander of the 7th Fleet, after four ship collisions in the Western Pacific over the past year, the service announced.
The commander of U.S. Pacific Fleet, Adm. Scott Swift, Aucoin on Wednesday, two U.S. officials familiar with the situation, due to “loss of confidence in his ability to command,” according to a 7th Fleet statement.
This past weekend the destroyer USS John S. McCain collided with an oil tanker near Singapore, and led to a search-and-rescue mission for 10 missing sailors. Some remains have been found, but the search continues.
Of the four collisions this year, two have been deadly. On June 17, the destroyer USS Fitzgerald collided with another commercial ship, killing seven sailors. Leaders aboard that ship were dismissed last week.
Aucoin, who became 7th Fleet commander in September 2015, was already expected to retire in the coming weeks. Rear Adm. Phil Sawyer takes over the Yokosuka, Japan-based fleet immediately. The statement points out that he had already been confirmed for the position and approved to receive a third star.
While Navy officials are investigating the role that training may have played in the collisions, Aucoin’s ouster doesn’t mean the Navy found a specific fault against him. The Navy has a tradition of of holding its leaders accountable, in which top commanding officers are dismissed when their superiors lose confidence in their ability to lead.
News of the impending firing was first reported by the Wall Street Journal.
