The Navy 'Relieved a Total of 16 Commanding Officers of Command' in 2023

Summary and Key Points You Need to Know: U.S. Navy Commander Cameron Yaste, commanding officer of the USS John McCain (DDG-56), was relieved of duty after a photo surfaced showing him holding an M4 rifle with the scope mounted backward.

-While it’s common for military officers to be photographed with weapons, this mistake led to widespread ridicule, and the Navy cited a lack of confidence in Yaste's leadership.

-Speculation suggests that the backward scope might not be the full story. This incident aligns with a recent trend of Navy commanders being removed for various issues, with Yaste being one of many officers to lose their position in 2023.

Photo of U.S. Navy Commander Sank His Career

A picture can tell a thousand words, and in the case of one U.S. Navy officer, it was enough to sink his career. There have been stories of military personnel sharing inappropriate photos – like a Royal Navy officer who filmed pornographic videos for the OnlyFans website. And there have been those who have shared too much information including classified secrets.

But Cameron Yaste, the commanding officer of the Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyer USS John McCain (DDG-56), was relieved from his post for a photo of him with an M4 assault rifle. Military officers, even those in the U.S. Navy, are often photographed with weapons – but the sea service apparently took issue with his not recognizing the scope was fitted incorrectly to the rifle.

The scope was mounted backward and Yaste appeared to be unaware of the mistake.

The image, which was first posted online in April, received a fair amount of ridicule on social media, including from the Marine Corps, which posted its own photo of a Marine firing the same type of weapon while aboard the amphibious assault ship USS Boxer (LHD-4) with the caption, "Clear Sight Picture."

More to the Story?

The initial post of Yaste holding the rifle was soon deleted, while the U.S. Navy responded on social media, writing, "Thank you for pointing out our rifle scope error in the previous post. Picture has been removed until EMI (extra military instruction) is completed."

While it seemed like an honest mistake, and it isn't clear if Yaste fitted the scope to the rifle, the sea service expressed a lack of confidence, and in a statement said, "The Navy holds commanding officers to the highest standards and holds them accountable when those standards are not met."

The Associated Press reported this week, "Yaste has been temporarily replaced by Capt. Allison Christy, deputy commodore of Destroyer Squadron 21, which is part of the USS Abraham Lincoln Carrier Strike Group." The Nimitz-class nuclear-powered carrier and escorts – including DDG-56 – are now in the Gulf of Oman.

It has been speculated that there is more to the story than just a backward scope. It would appear from the reports that none of the sailors of USS John McCain came forward to explain the situation or to defend their commanding officer. No mention has been made that anyone spoke up for Yaste.

This also appears to be part of a trend with the U.S. Navy.

As Task & Purpose reported in January, last year the sea service "relieved a total of 16 commanding officers of command: 14 were fired 'due to a loss of confidence' in their ability to command." The report added that eight of those relieved were commanding officers of warships.

In addition, the executive officer of USS John Finn (DDG-113) was also removed from his post.

"That may sound like an awful lot of senior leaders getting sacked in just one year, but it's par for the course for the Navy, which holds commanding officers rigidly accountable for their performance as well as the conduct of the sailors and Marines whom they lead," Task & Purpose added while noting that there are generally three reasons that a commanding officer may be relieved of command.

That can include "Bad personal judgment, violation of a law, or poor performance.

Author Experience and Expertise: Peter Suciu

Peter Suciu is a Michigan-based writer. He has contributed to more than four dozen magazines, newspapers, and websites with over 3,200 published pieces over a twenty-year career in journalism. He regularly writes about military hardware, firearms history, cybersecurity, politics, and international affairs. Peter is also a Contributing Writer for Forbes and Clearance Jobs. You can follow him on Twitter: @PeterSuciu. You can email the author: Editor@nationalinterest.org.

Image Credit: Creative Commons.