# Captain of USN Aircraft carrier begs for help as COVID19 ravages ships company. **URL:** \ **Category:** The Quarantine Zone\ **Tags:** covid-quarantine\ **Created:** [March 31, 2020, 1:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/captain-of-usn-aircraft-carrier-begs-for-help-as-covid19-ravages-ships-company/850738 "2020-03-31T13:47:42Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![Monty](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/monty/32/47_2.png) [@Monty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Monty)\ **Post date:** [April 3, 2020, 9:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/captain-of-usn-aircraft-carrier-begs-for-help-as-covid19-ravages-ships-company/850738/41 "2020-04-03T21:47:42Z")
[Here is the statement of the Acting Secretary of the Navy regarding the \*Theodore Roosevelt[/]'s commanding officer’s relief from command.](https://www.navy.mil/submit/display.asp?story_id=112537) > [@](#): > > Good afternoon. Thank you again for your diligence and courage in keeping the American people informed as we all deal with the profound ramifications, and rapid developments, associated with this crisis. > > I am here today to inform you that today at my direction, the Commanding Officer of the USS Theodore Roosevelt, Captain Crozier, was relieved of command by the Carrier Strike Group Commander, Rear Admiral Stuart Baker. > > The Executive Officer, Captain Dan Keeler, has assumed command temporarily until such time as Rear Admiral Select Carlos Sardiello arrives in Guam to assume command. Rear Admiral Select Sardiello is the former commanding officer of the Theodore Roosevelt so he is extremely well-acquainted with the ship, many members of its crew and the operations and capabilities of the ship itself. He is the best person in the Navy right now to take command under these circumstances. > > As Secretary of the Navy, I could not be more proud of our men and women serving as part of the Navy and Marine Corps team. I can assure you that no one cares more than I do about their safety and welfare. I myself have a son in uniform, who is currently serving right now on active duty in Korea—one of the first nations in the world to have a significant spike in Coronavirus cases. I understand, both as a parent and a veteran, how critical our support lines are for the health and well-being of our people, especially now in the midst of a global pandemic. > > But there is a larger strategic context, one full of national security imperatives, of which all our commanders must all be aware today. While we may not be at war in a traditional sense, neither are we truly at peace. Authoritarian regimes are on the rise. Many nations are reaching, in many ways, to reduce our capacity to accomplish our national goals. This is actively happening every day. It has been a long time since the Navy and Marine Corps team has faced this broad array of capable global strategic challengers. A more agile and resilient mentality is necessary, up and down the chain of command. > > Perhaps more so than in the recent past, we require commanders with the judgment, maturity, and leadership composure under pressure to understand the ramifications of their actions within that larger dynamic strategic context. We all understand and cherish our responsibilities, and frankly our love, for all of our people in uniform, but to allow those emotions to color our judgment when communicating the current operational picture can, at best, create unnecessary confusion, and at worst, provide an incomplete picture of American combat readiness to our adversaries. > > When the Commanding Officer of the USS THEODORE ROOSEVELT decided to write his letter of 30 March 2020 that outlined his concerns for his crew in the midst of a COVID-19 outbreak, the Department of the Navy had already mobilized significant resources for days in response to his previous requests. On the same date marked on his letter, my Chief of Staff had called the CO directly, at my request, to ensure he had all the resources necessary for the health and safety of his crew. > > The CO told my Chief of Staff that he was receiving those resources, and was fully aware of the Navy’s response, only asking that the he wished the crew could be evacuated faster. My Chief of Staff ensured that the CO knew that he had an open line to me to use at any time. He even called the CO again a day later to follow up. At no time did the CO relay the various levels of alarm that I, along with the rest of the world, learned from his letter when it was published two days later. > > Once I read the letter, I immediately called the Chief of Naval Operations, ADM Gilday, and the Commander, U.S. Pacific Fleet, ADM Aquilino. ADM Gilday had just read the letter that morning as well, and ADM Aquilino had it the day before. We had a teleconference within minutes of my reading of that article, including the Commander, SEVENTH Fleet, VADM William Merz, ADM Aquilino, ADM Gilday, the Department of the Navy’s Surgeon General, RADM Bruce Gillingham, and others. That evening, we held another teleconference with the entire chain of command. > > The next day, I spoke with the CO of the THEODORE ROOSEVELT myself, and this morning, I have spoken to the TR’s Carrier Strike Group Commander, RDML Stuart Baker. RDML Baker did not know about the letter before it was sent to him via email by the CO. It is important to understand that the Strike Group Commander, the CO’s immediate boss, is embarked on the Theodore Roosevelt, right down the passageway from him. The letter was sent over non- secure, unclassified email even though that ship possesses some of the most sophisticated communications and encryption equipment in the Fleet. > > It was sent outside the chain of command, at the same time the rest of the Navy was fully responding. Worse, the Captain’s actions made his Sailors, their families, and many in the public believe that his letter was the only reason help from our larger Navy family was forthcoming, which was hardly the case. > > Command is a sacred trust that must be continually earned, both from the Sailors and Marines one leads, and from the institution which grants that special, honored privilege. > > As I learned more about the events of the past week on board USS THEODORE ROOSEVELT (CVN-71), including my personal conversations with the Strike Group Commander, Commander, SEVENTH Fleet, Commander, U.S. Pacific Fleet, the Chief of Naval Operations, and CAPT Crozier himself, I could reach no other conclusion than that Captain Crozier had allowed the complexity of his challenge with COVID breakout on the ship to overwhelm his ability to act professionally, when acting professionally was what was needed most. We do, and we should, expect more from the Commanding Officers of our aircraft carriers. > > I did not come to this decision lightly. I have no doubt in my mind that Captain Crozier did what he thought was in the best interests of the safety and well-being of his crew. Unfortunately, it did the opposite. It unnecessarily raised alarms with the families of our Sailors and Marines with no plan to address those concerns. It raised concerns about the operational capabilities and operational security of the ship that could have emboldened our adversaries to seek advantage, and it undermined the chain of command who had been moving and adjusting as rapidly as possible to get him the help he needed. > > For these reasons, I lost confidence in his ability to lead that warship as it continues to fight through this virus, get the crew healthy, so that it can continue to meet its national security requirements. In my judgement relieving him of command was in the best interests of the United States Navy and the nation in this time when the nation needs the Navy to be strong and confident in the face of adversity. The responsibility for this decision rests with me. I expect no congratulations for it, and it gives me no pleasure in making it. CAPT Crozier is an honorable man, who despite this uncharacteristic lapse of judgment, has dedicated himself throughout a lifetime of incredible service to our nation. > > Pursuant to this action, and with my full support, the Chief of Naval Operations Admiral Gilday has directed the Vice Chief of Naval Operations, Admiral Robert Burke, to conduct an investigation into the circumstances and climate of the entire Pacific Fleet to help determine what may have contributed to this breakdown in the chain of command. We must ensure we can count on the right judgment, professionalism, composure, and leadership from our Commanding Officers everywhere on our Navy and Marine Corps team, but especially in the Western Pacific. I have no indication that there is a broader problem in this regard, but we have obligation to calmly and evenly investigate that nonetheless. > > To our Commanding Officers, it would be a mistake to view this decision as somehow not supportive of your duty to report problems, request help, protect your crews, and challenge assumptions as you see fit. > > This decision is not one of retribution. It is about confidence. It is not an indictment of character, but rather of judgement. While I do take issue with thevalidity of some of the points in Captain Crozier’s letter, he was absolutely correct in raising them. > > It was the way in which he did this, by not working through and with his Strike Group Commander to develop a strategy to resolve the problems he raised, by not sending the letter to and through his chain of command, by not protecting the sensitive nature of the information contained within the letter appropriately, and lastly by not reaching out to me directly to voice is concerns, after that avenue had been provided to him through my team, that was unacceptable. > > Let me be clear, you all have a duty to be transparent with your respective chains of command, even if you fear they might disagree with you. This duty requires courage, but it also requires respect for that chain of command, and for the sensitivity of the information you decide to share and the manner you choose to share it. > > Finally, and perhaps most importantly, I would like to send a message to the crew of the Theodore Roosevelt and their families back here at home. I am entirely convinced that your Commanding Officer loves you, and that he had you at the center of his heart and mind in every decision that he has made. I also know that you have great affection, and love, for him as well. But it is my responsibility to ensure that his love and concern for you is matched, if not exceeded by, his sober and professional judgement under pressure. > > You deserve that throughout all the dangerous activities for which you train so diligently, but most importantly, for those situations which are unpredictable and are hard to plan for. It’s important because you are the TR, you are the Big Stick, and what happens onboard the TR matters far beyond the physical limits of your hull. Your shipmates across the fleet need for you to be strong and ready—and most especially right now they need you to be courageous in the face of adversity. > > The nation needs to know that the Big Stick is undaunted, unstoppable —and that you will stay that way as we as a Navy help you through this COVID-19 challenge. Our adversaries need to know this as well. They respect and fear the Big Stick, and they should. We will not allow anything to diminish that respect and fear as you, and the rest of our nation, fights through this virus. As I stated, we are not at war by traditional measures, but neither are we at peace. The nation you defend is in a fight right now for our economic, personal and political security, and you are on the front lines of this fight in many ways. > > You can offer comfort to your fellow citizens who are struggling and fearful here at home by standing the watch, and working your way through this pandemic with courage and optimism and set the example for the nation. We have an obligation to ensure you have everything you need as fast as we can get it there, and you have my commitment that we will not let you down. The nation you have sworn to defend is in a fight, and the nations and bad actors around the world who wish us harm should understand that the Big Stick is in the neighborhood and that her crew is standing the watch. > > Thank you, and I am ready to answer any questions you may have. I think many astute readers will have questions the ASECNAV does not want to hear. ---
**Author:** ![nearwildheaven](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/90db22/32.png) [@nearwildheaven](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/nearwildheaven)\ **Post date:** [April 3, 2020, 10:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/captain-of-usn-aircraft-carrier-begs-for-help-as-covid19-ravages-ships-company/850738/42 "2020-04-03T22:32:22Z")
> [@GreenWyvern](#): > > Another example of the US Navy showing its can-do spirit and coronavirus readiness: > > [The 1,000-Bed Comfort Was Supposed to Aid New York. It Has 20 Patients](https://www.nytimes.com/2020/04/02/nyregion/ny-coronavirus-usns-comfort.html) > _“It’s a joke,” said a top hospital executive, whose facilities are packed with coronavirus patients._ > > The USNS Comfort is refusing to accept coronavirus patients… or patients with 49 other medical conditions… > > … so it’s sitting almost empty, and its medical staff have almost nothing to do… > > …meanwhile patients are dying in hallways in NYC hospitals… > > Seems like cold comfort. It, and the other field hospitals, are designated for people who are being hospitalized for something other than COVID. ---
**Author:** ![Melbourne](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/b5e925/32.png) [@Melbourne](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Melbourne)\ **Post date:** [April 3, 2020, 10:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/captain-of-usn-aircraft-carrier-begs-for-help-as-covid19-ravages-ships-company/850738/43 "2020-04-03T22:32:54Z")
> [@AK84](#): > > Here > [https://www.sfchronicle.com/bayarea/article/Exclusive-Captain-of-aircraft-carrier-with-15167883.php](https://www.sfchronicle.com/bayarea/article/Exclusive-Captain-of-aircraft-carrier-with-15167883.php) > > Did they not hear about the cruise ships? Why did they not cancel the deployment?:eek::smack: > . So the carrier visit is a _critical piece of geo-politics_, driven by our relations with the Philippines and Vietnam and China. And it would have been _absolutely impossible_ for the Captain to have made any kind of tactical decision contradicting that. So we can see that the original sin lies in Washington, and the great fear, the loss of confidence, is that the Captain might come out and say that. ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [April 4, 2020, 2:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/captain-of-usn-aircraft-carrier-begs-for-help-as-covid19-ravages-ships-company/850738/44 "2020-04-04T14:04:17Z")
For a warship, quarantine may well be the proper response. In the close quarters of a warship, it’s likely that everyone who’s going to be infected already is. But the people on board are selected for youth and physical fitness, and this disease has an extremely low mortality rate for the young and fit. If they stay out at sea for the next few weeks, there might be a few deaths (though even that isn’t a given), but they won’t be infecting anyone else. ---
**Author:** ![Ravenman](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ravenman/32/2929_2.png) [@Ravenman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ravenman)\ **Post date:** [April 4, 2020, 2:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/captain-of-usn-aircraft-carrier-begs-for-help-as-covid19-ravages-ships-company/850738/45 "2020-04-04T14:32:32Z")
If someone suggested that Jared Kushner is going to take over the ship… well, I wouldn’t bet against it. ---
**Author:** ![VOW](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/vow/32/3043_2.png) [@VOW](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/VOW)\ **Post date:** [April 4, 2020, 2:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/captain-of-usn-aircraft-carrier-begs-for-help-as-covid19-ravages-ships-company/850738/46 "2020-04-04T14:32:34Z")
> [@Monty](#): > > [Here is the statement of the Acting Secretary of the Navy regarding the \*Theodore Roosevelt[/]'s commanding officer’s relief from command.](https://www.navy.mil/submit/display.asp?story_id=112537) > > I think many astute readers will have questions the ASECNAV does not want to hear. I had to roll up my pant legs and put on boots when I read that. The captain’s crew was in dire straits, and the Navy bigwigs were “coordinating” and “taking into consideration.” By the time an “official” response arrived, the flight deck would have been covered in bodies. Reminds me of the horrendous mess with the USS Pueblo. The blame for everything was heaped upon the captain, Lloyd Bucher. Bucher was a hero to his crew, as this captain will alway be to the Roosevelt crew. ~VOW ---
**Author:** ![RivkahChaya](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rivkahchaya/32/8919_2.png) [@RivkahChaya](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RivkahChaya)\ **Post date:** [April 4, 2020, 3:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/captain-of-usn-aircraft-carrier-begs-for-help-as-covid19-ravages-ships-company/850738/47 "2020-04-04T15:01:52Z")
A lot of military people who treat are PAs and NPs. They can prescribe a lot of drugs, but there are classes of drugs they can’t prescribe, and they are used to treat things like cancer and addiction. Basically, anything which is commonly abused. If addicts are going to die of withdrawal because no one can prescribe Valium or methadone, and cancer patients who would go to the ER for pain relief can’t get it, it’s no use bringing those people there. It’s also highly unlikely that a Navy doctor or other type of personnel (different in the Army, which does deal with indigenous populations), will EVER have seen a case of anything for which there is a vaccine, because people in the military are not allowed to have objections to vaccines, nor are they likely to ever have seen a disease that is a complication of advanced HIV/AIDS. Aside from not having any experience with these ailments, if the ship is docking with just the supplies it has, and nothing else, it literally CAN’T treat such patients. ---
**Author:** ![DesertDog](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/desertdog/32/11503_2.png) [@DesertDog](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DesertDog)\ **Post date:** [April 4, 2020, 4:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/captain-of-usn-aircraft-carrier-begs-for-help-as-covid19-ravages-ships-company/850738/48 "2020-04-04T16:32:25Z")
> [@Monty](#): > > [Here is the statement of the Acting Secretary of the Navy regarding the \*Theodore Roosevelt[/]'s commanding officer’s relief from command.](https://www.navy.mil/submit/display.asp?story_id=112537) > > I think many astute readers will have questions the ASECNAV does not want to hear. Personally, mine would be is his dick is long enough to reach his asshole. ---
**Author:** ![AK84](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/85e7bf/32.png) [@AK84](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AK84)\ **Post date:** [April 4, 2020, 5:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/captain-of-usn-aircraft-carrier-begs-for-help-as-covid19-ravages-ships-company/850738/49 "2020-04-04T17:04:54Z")
> [@Ravenman](#): > > If someone suggested that Jared Kushner is going to take over the ship… well, I wouldn’t bet against it. In this era when the unthinkable becomes the actual near-daily, frankly, that would be perhaps one of the less surreal things to happen. ---
**Author:** ![Voyager](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/voyager/32/133_2.png) [@Voyager](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Voyager)\ **Post date:** [April 4, 2020, 5:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/captain-of-usn-aircraft-carrier-begs-for-help-as-covid19-ravages-ships-company/850738/50 "2020-04-04T17:36:34Z")
> [@Ravenman](#): > > If someone suggested that Jared Kushner is going to take over the ship… well, I wouldn’t bet against it. And if anything happened to the ship, you know who’d be the first one off. Rats do leave sinking ships, after all. ---
**Author:** ![Stranger\_On\_A\_Train](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/13edae/32.png) [@Stranger\_On\_A\_Train](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Stranger_On_A_Train)\ **Post date:** [April 4, 2020, 5:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/captain-of-usn-aircraft-carrier-begs-for-help-as-covid19-ravages-ships-company/850738/51 "2020-04-04T17:41:22Z")
> [@Chronos](#): > > For a warship, quarantine may well be the proper response. In the close quarters of a warship, it’s likely that everyone who’s going to be infected already is. But the people on board are selected for youth and physical fitness, and this disease has an extremely low mortality rate for the young and fit. If they stay out at sea for the next few weeks, there might be a few deaths (though even that isn’t a given), but they won’t be infecting anyone else. This thinking misleading at best and catastrophic at worst. [_Healthline_: “ Nearly 40% of Those Hospitalized for COVID-19 Are Under 55”](https://www.healthline.com/health-news/covid-19-isnt-just-dangerous-for-older-adults) In the confined spaces and lack of open ventilation in an aircraft carrier, the viral load will be higher which is correlated with more severe and faster onset of COVID-19. And even on aircraft carriers with thousands of crew, the sick bay facilities are limited and not set up for long term care of critically ill patients because such casualties would normally be medivac’d to land-based medical care at the earliest opportunity. Even if the contagion has already swept through the crew (very likely given to confined work spaces, shared living quarters, and common cafeteria areas) getting the known infected crew off the ship both frees up space to isolate and support non-critical patients and gets more critically ill patients closer to adequate care facilities or, in the case of death, not being stacked in the kitchen reefer because there is no place to store a significant number of corpses on the ship. There are way too many people in and outside of government trying to treat this pandemic as “business as usual” rather than the ongoing health catastrophe that it is, and that unwillingness for face fact and take effective action is going to have repercussions long after the epidemic is extinguished. Stranger ---
**Author:** ![Voyager](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/voyager/32/133_2.png) [@Voyager](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Voyager)\ **Post date:** [April 4, 2020, 5:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/captain-of-usn-aircraft-carrier-begs-for-help-as-covid19-ravages-ships-company/850738/52 "2020-04-04T17:46:26Z")
In an [url=https://www.nytimes.com/2020/04/03/opinion/coronavirus-crozier-roosevelt.html] Op-ed in the Times today, Theodore Roosevelt’s great-grandson notes that TR has something similar happen to him. After the Spanish American War a lot of troops remained in Cuba, threatened by yellow fever and malaria. There were calls to bring them home, but the Secretary of War refused, Career military leaders there didn’t feel they could protest, fearing for their careers, but Roosevelt, as a short-term volunteer, wrote a fiery open letter which wound up in every paper in the country, and shamed the Secretary of War into bringing the troops home to quarantine, saving many lives. ---
**Author:** ![Stranger\_On\_A\_Train](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/13edae/32.png) [@Stranger\_On\_A\_Train](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Stranger_On_A_Train)\ **Post date:** [April 4, 2020, 6:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/captain-of-usn-aircraft-carrier-begs-for-help-as-covid19-ravages-ships-company/850738/53 "2020-04-04T18:48:19Z")
I’ll also point out that an aircraft carrier requires hundreds of crew just to keep the vessel in operation, notwithstanding those necessary to conduct routine flight operations. If there is a sudden epidemic that sickens a significant portion of the crew on a nuclear-powered aircraft carrier resulted in degraded crew performance and safe operation of the vessel, it _puts that major capital asset at risk_, notwithstanding the ongoing problems the US Navy has been having [with staffing and training vessels](https://www.propublica.org/getinvolved/sailors-report-enduring-concerns-about-navy-readiness-and-leadership). Even balancing the need to maintain a military presence against the potential for a serious accident, it would make sense to at least evac crew presenting symptoms and monitor the rest when they go on- and off-shift. Just pretending like all is normal puts not only the entire crew but that multi-billion dollar strategic asset at risk. Captain Crozier may have violated regulations; I doubt what he did is a court marshal offense but even if it is, he did the right thing by going outside a chain of command that was not addressing his concerns and making the wider Navy community aware of the grotesque lack of action. And whoever leaked that memo to the _San Francisco Chronicle_ did the right thing by highlighting a leadership failure within the upper military and government executive management. Of all critical areas of government, the military should be most aware and responsive to a threat with the potential to risk national security and the lives of thousands of servicepeople. Stranger ---
**Author:** ![Ann\_Hedonia](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ann_hedonia/32/319_2.png) [@Ann\_Hedonia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ann_Hedonia)\ **Post date:** [April 4, 2020, 8:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/captain-of-usn-aircraft-carrier-begs-for-help-as-covid19-ravages-ships-company/850738/54 "2020-04-04T20:05:01Z")
> [@CarnalK](#): > > Do you find it hard to imagine that there might be a whole 50 illnesses that a hospital ship is unequipped to care for? > > :rolleyes: indeed I have a suspicion that the ship could’ve been set up to take a wider variety of patients if they had more time. But the Liar-in-Chief told the world it was ready to go and on its way —— so they set sail before they were properly outfitted and now it’s pretty much useless. Just my guess. But I bet it’s true. ---
**Author:** ![TonySinclair](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/49beb7/32.png) [@TonySinclair](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TonySinclair)\ **Post date:** [April 4, 2020, 8:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/captain-of-usn-aircraft-carrier-begs-for-help-as-covid19-ravages-ships-company/850738/55 "2020-04-04T20:08:25Z")
> [@Ravenman](#): > > If someone suggested that Jared Kushner is going to take over the ship… well, I wouldn’t bet against it. To be fair, he looks adorable in his sailor suit. ---
**Author:** ![Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/7cd45c/32.png) [@Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elendil_s_Heir)\ **Post date:** [April 4, 2020, 8:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/captain-of-usn-aircraft-carrier-begs-for-help-as-covid19-ravages-ships-company/850738/56 "2020-04-04T20:10:00Z")
> [@AK84](#): > > In this era when the unthinkable becomes the actual near-daily, frankly, that would be perhaps one of the less surreal things to happen. Like this, maybe, less than a year ago?: [https://www.navytimes.com/news/your-navy/2019/05/30/white-house-tells-navy-to-keep-destroyer-mccain-out-of-sight-during-trump-visit-to-japan-report-says/](https://www.navytimes.com/news/your-navy/2019/05/30/white-house-tells-navy-to-keep-destroyer-mccain-out-of-sight-during-trump-visit-to-japan-report-says/) ---
**Author:** ![What\_Exit](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/what_exit/32/10652_2.png) [@What\_Exit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/What_Exit)\ **Post date:** [April 4, 2020, 8:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/captain-of-usn-aircraft-carrier-begs-for-help-as-covid19-ravages-ships-company/850738/57 "2020-04-04T20:29:13Z")
> [@Elendil\_s\_Heir](#): > > Like this, maybe, less than a year ago?: [https://www.navytimes.com/news/your-navy/2019/05/30/white-house-tells-navy-to-keep-destroyer-mccain-out-of-sight-during-trump-visit-to-japan-report-says/](https://www.navytimes.com/news/your-navy/2019/05/30/white-house-tells-navy-to-keep-destroyer-mccain-out-of-sight-during-trump-visit-to-japan-report-says/) So hard to believe Trump is our CIC. ---
**Author:** ![aruvqan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aruvqan/32/2891_2.png) [@aruvqan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aruvqan)\ **Post date:** [April 4, 2020, 11:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/captain-of-usn-aircraft-carrier-begs-for-help-as-covid19-ravages-ships-company/850738/58 "2020-04-04T23:49:57Z")
> [@TokyoBayer](#): > > Yes. I’m sure he knew what he was doing and went ahead anyway. I am sad to see him get raked over the coals, but glad he cared enough for his command to do so. > [@garygnu](#): > > Can’t find the article, but it’s my understanding that he TRIED to use the chain of command and it was ignored repeatedly. And he didn’t exactly “go public,” he CC’d 20 or 30 more people than he should have, knowing it would probably leak. Chain of command doesn’t work. I had tried to go chain of command to get word to mrAru that he needed to be tested for a specific health issue, and was stonewalled by his command, so I sidestepped and went to the Red Cross and Chaplains to get word to him to get tested. This was back in the ‘good old days’ of the familygram [25 words, absolutely NO bad news of any sort …, 6 per cruise] On the plus side, he did test negative, but did get teased for the cruise for ‘[sheep hiv](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Caseous_lymphadenitis)’ :smack: ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [April 5, 2020, 12:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/captain-of-usn-aircraft-carrier-begs-for-help-as-covid19-ravages-ships-company/850738/59 "2020-04-05T00:35:29Z")
Even the Diamond Princess cruise ship had a less than 1% mortality rate, and that’s with cruise ship demographics, which skew much older and less-healthy than the general population, let alone the military population. As for endangering the ship itself, over half of those infected show no symptoms at all. Any naval vessel can be adequately maintained in peacetime operations with 50% crew. This ship certainly isn’t ready to go off and fight a war right now. But it would be even less ready if you evacuated everyone off of it ---
**Author:** ![Stranger\_On\_A\_Train](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/13edae/32.png) [@Stranger\_On\_A\_Train](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Stranger_On_A_Train)\ **Post date:** [April 5, 2020, 1:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/captain-of-usn-aircraft-carrier-begs-for-help-as-covid19-ravages-ships-company/850738/60 "2020-04-05T01:14:19Z")
> [@Chronos](#): > > Even the Diamond Princess cruise ship had a less than 1% mortality rate, and that’s with cruise ship demographics, which skew much older and less-healthy than the general population, let alone the military population. > > As for endangering the ship itself, over half of those infected show no symptoms at all. Any naval vessel can be adequately maintained in peacetime operations with 50% crew. > > This ship certainly isn’t ready to go off and fight a war right now. But it would be even less ready if you evacuated everyone off of it On the _Diamond Princess_ once contagion was recognized they essentially locked down the passengers and instituted the standard infection hygiene protocol with the crew, which was wholly inadequate for SARS-CoV-2, but at least is prevented close contacts. Patients presenting serious symptoms were evacuated and at least the ship received medical support by Japanese authorities once it docked in quarantine. On an aircraft carrier or other warship, on the other hand, there really isn’t any way to isolate a significant amount of infected crew, nor is there any possibility of ‘social’ (physical) distancing to limit exposures. Gangways are tight, most crew have shared quarters and lavatory facilities, the enlisted all eat in one mess, and people are constantly on top of one another. What we have seen in those kinds of conditions is higher incidence of serious or critical illnesses presumably due to the higher viral exposure and poor air exchange, and again, the idea that younger people just don’t suffer serious symptoms in significant numbers is not correct even if the case fatality rate goes up with age bracket. As previously noted, the sick bay just doesn’t have facilities for long duration intensive care for more than a handful of patients so even a few percent that need significant care will overwhelm the medical faculties, so at a minimum evacuation patients who are presenting serious symptoms and may require support is critical to protecting the rest of the crew and safe operations of the vessel. No one has suggested evacuating the entire ship and abandoning it, but evacuating all but a skeleton crew and then making provisions to rotate people back in as they are shown to have been exposed and developed immunity would be the smart plan. Instead, it appears that the Navy senior command decided to do nothing and see how it goes, which is just craven negligence and irresponsibility to an extreme. Stranger [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/captain-of-usn-aircraft-carrier-begs-for-help-as-covid19-ravages-ships-company/850738.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/captain-of-usn-aircraft-carrier-begs-for-help-as-covid19-ravages-ships-company/850738.md?page=4)