Admiral troubled by military's 'lack of accountability'

By Dan Nakaso
Advertiser Staff Writer

The three admirals who investigated the fatal collision between a fast-attack submarine and a Japanese fishing boat sometimes used blistering language in criticizing some of the officers and sailors aboard the USS Greeneville, but left their ultimate punishment and their future to the submarine community.

Cmdr. Scott Waddle's naval career has ended. Advertiser library photo

The recommendations follow a trend in military justice that disturbs Eugene Carroll, a retired rear admiral and vice president of the Center for Defense Information, a military think tank.

"It's part of the climate in the military that accountability has slipped," Carroll said. "People in the military are less accountable. It's very troublesome."

Only the career of the Greeneville's captain, Cmdr. Scott Waddle, is clearly over.

The other five crewmen who were criticized by the court of inquiry still can thrive in the Navy, Carroll said.

Even the executive officer, officer of the deck, the chief of the boat and sonar supervisor who were recommended for "admonishment" by the new captain of the Greeneville can go on to promotions, Carroll said.

It all depends on whether other submariners feel that Waddle's forceful, charismatic personality overshadowed his crew, Carroll said.

"The submarine community will have insights about the command climate within that ship, about the captain's style and about the team that he put together," he said. "If the submarine community has decided that Waddle was running a one-man show, the other people didn't have a chance to build their skills and confidence."

Specifically, the court of inquiry recommended that Adm. Thomas Fargo, Pacific Fleet commander, hold an admiral's mast for Waddle.

Fargo found Waddle guilty of negligent dereliction of duties and negligent hazarding of a vessel.

The court's next most serious recommendation was directed at Patrick Seacrest, the Greeneville's fire control technician of the watch, who made a series of assumptions and blunders in tracking the Ehime Maru. The court recommended that Seacrest requalify before standing watch again and recommended a captain's mast.

Fargo ignored the court's recommendation for Lt. j.g. Michael Coen, the Greeneville's young and inexperienced officer of the deck. The court concluded that Coen was trying to conduct a proper periscope search of surface ships but was prevented by Waddle, who took over the periscope.

"Given (Coen's) typical methodical and deliberate approach, he might have detected Ehime Maru," the court wrote.

The admirals recommended that Coen face admonishment by the new Greeneville captain. Instead, Fargo held an admiral's mast.

"I counseled him to ensure he fully understood his obligation with regard to the safe navigation of the ship and the proper supervision of personnel on watch in the control room, despite the presence of the commanding officer," Fargo said.

The court recommended that the other key Greeneville crewmen — Lt. Cmdr. Gerald Pfeifer, the executive officer; chief of the boat Douglas Coffman; and sonar supervisor Edward McGiboney — also be admonished.

But written admonishments can be permanent or stay in a personnel file for only a few months, Carroll said.

They can also be designed as a punishment, Carroll said, or used as an incentive to let the sailors learn from their mistakes.

Dan Nakaso can be reached by phone at 525-8085, or by e-mail at dnakaso@honoluluadvertiser.com.