{"id":15385,"date":"2021-01-15T21:48:46","date_gmt":"2021-01-15T21:48:46","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/defensenews\/uncategorized\/2021\/01\/15\/in-the-wake-of-tragedy-the-us-surface-fleet-is-all-in-on-simulators\/"},"modified":"2026-08-07T21:30:04","modified_gmt":"2026-08-07T21:30:04","slug":"in-the-wake-of-tragedy-the-us-surface-fleet-is-all-in-on-simulators","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/defensenews\/naval\/2021\/01\/15\/in-the-wake-of-tragedy-the-us-surface-fleet-is-all-in-on-simulators\/","title":{"rendered":"In the wake of tragedy, the US surface fleet is all in on simulators"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

WASHINGTON \u2014 It has been nearly four years since one of the worst years in modern U.S. Navy history<\/a>, when a string of accidents and collisions sidelined three ships and resulted in the deaths of 17 sailors. But the service\u2019s top surface warfare officer wants to make clear that it hasn\u2019t moved on.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In 2017, the destroyers Fitzgerald and John S. McCain endured deadly collisions in Asia, leading many to wonder if the Navy had lost sight of basic ship-handling competency under the crushing weight of operational demands from U.S. Pacific Command. Assessments in the wake of those accidents showed some troubling ship-handling shortfalls among junior officers<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Also that year, the cruiser Antietam ran aground outside of Fleet Activity Yokosuka, causing more than a thousand gallons of hydraulic fluid to leak into Tokyo Bay.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In his address this week at the annual Surface Navy Association symposium, top surface warfare officer Vice Adm. Roy Kitchener told a virtual audience that the surface community is increasingly relying on simulators to give officers and sailors alike the chance to keep their skills sharp, even if they are unable to get underway.<\/p>\n\n\n\t