The Fate Of Captain Crozier

I have been watching, with great interest, the case of Captain Brett Crozier. He was the captain of the USS Theodore Roosevelt, an aircraft carrier stricken with COVID-19. He was relieved of command by the acting Secretary of the Navy.

His crime? He saw the virus taking hold on his ship and he did everything possible to get his sailors ashore for treatment. His firing has been the topic of great consternation among our military….and the nation.

Carol and I have children who have---and are serving.  I have always understood the inherent danger. But I have also expected our leaders to do everything possible to protect our children. In this case, on the surface, it appears Captain Crozier had the safety of his crew as his guiding principle.

He was fired. Berated by his boss…sent off the boat to a rousing salute by the men in his command.

Now our military leadership doesn’t know what to do with him. It might have been easier if Crozier’s four-page letter had not been leaked to a newspaper.

In my view, he clearly was thinking of the welfare of his crew. He was not in a shooting war. Crozier felt to leave infected sailors aboard an aircraft carrier was an invitation to further spread. If my son was on that ship, I would expect nothing less from the captain.

This guy has spent a lifetime serving. A Naval Academy graduate, he understood the chair-of-command. He knew what he was doing….but nobody was helping his crew. So he acted.

I’m glad he did.