Citing personal misconduct as the reason, the U.S. Navy fired the chief of the boat of the Los Angeles-class attack submarine USS Albany (SSN 753) on March 16.
Senior Chief Dwight Newton was removed from his position by Commander Wade Landis, Albany’s commanding officer for personal misconduct.
Newton is charged with violations of UCMJ Article 112a (wrongful use of a controlled substance) and Article 107 (false official statement).
Newton, who served as COB since October 2013, has been temporarily assigned to Submarine Squadron 6 pending the outcome of disciplinary and administrative proceedings. FTCM Edward Brennan has been assigned as the Albany’s COB.
The chief of boat is the commanding officer’s senior enlisted advisor. Newton is the second chief of the boat the U.S. Navy has relieved of duties this month. On March 2 , the COB of the Pearl Harbor-based fast attack submarine USS Columbia (SSN 771) was removed form his position due to what the Navy described as poor leadership.
Additionally, the commander of the Ohio-class submarine USS Georgia was relieved of his duties in January, 2016. While returning to port on November 25, 2015, Captain Dave Adams caused an estimated $1 million of damage as he steered the submarine into a channel buoy and grounded it.
Following an investigation of the incident, the U.S. Navy said it was relieving Captain Adams “due to a loss of confidence in his ability to command.”