Navy destroyer ship to lose command

The top three leaders of a U.S. warship that collided with a commercial container ship last month, killing seven sailors, will lose command of the ship, according to an announcement by U.S. Navy officials Thursday. Due to “inadequate leadership” of the USS Fitzgerald, the Navy has relieved Cmdr. Bryce Benson, Cmdr. Sean Babbitt, and Master Chief Petty Officer Brice Baldwin of their duties and will punish more than a dozen other sailors. Adm. William Moran, the vice chief of naval operations, told reporters “serious mistakes were made by members of the crew,” including poor seamanship and flaws in keeping watch, which led to the “avoidable” crash on June 17 off the coast of Japan. The collision flooded a berthing area of the ship where 35 sailors were sleeping. Twenty-eight escaped, but seven drowned.