Sub Commander Relieved After Crew Ignored Tests, Faked Logs Commanding Officer of Nuclear Sub Reliev

Oct 26, 06:42 AM

Current Headlines: By CHELSEA J. CARTER

By Chelsea J. Carter

The Associated Press

LOS ANGELES

The commanding officer of the nuclear-powered submarine Hampton was relieved of his duty Thursday because of a loss of confidence in his leadership, the Navy said.

Cmdr. Michael B. Portland was relieved of duty after a Navy investigation found that the ship failed to do daily safety checks on its nuclear reactor for a month and falsified records to cover it up .

"His oversight of the crew's performance did not identify these issues" without an outside inspection, Navy Lt. Alli Myrick, a public affairs officer, told The Associated Press.

It appears from a preliminary investigation on the Hampton that sailors in Submarine Squadron 11 had skipped the required analysis of the chemical and radiological properties of the submarine's reactor for more than a month, even though a daily check is required.

The Hampton, a Los Angeles Class submarine assigned to Submarine Squadron 11, is considered by the Navy to be the most advanced nuclear attack submarine , carrying a torpedo, cruise missile, and mine-laying arsenal, according to information on the Navy's Web site.

Myrick said Portland will be temporarily reassigned and the Hampton will not conduct operations until the Navy can confirm that the safety standards have been met.

Portland's removal comes after officials also discovered that logs on the Hampton had been filled out to make it appear the daily checks had actually been done.

Other members of the squadron discovered the lapse during a routine examination required as part of the redundancy built into the system so problems are caught.

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