The skipper of the frigate Thach was fired this week for a “loss of confidence” in his ability to lead his crew, a Navy official said Friday.From the high highs to the low lows in no time. Command can be that way.
Cmdr. Steven R. Rasmussen, a 1988 graduate of the Naval Academy who took command of the ship Oct. 6, 2006, was relieved of command Thursday by Capt. Michael Gilday, said Cmdr. Jane Campbell, aNaval Surface Forces spokeswoman in Coronado. Gilday is commodore of San Diego-based Destroyer Squadron 7.
“Loss of confidence is the reason behind it,” Campbell said, declining to provide details of what prompted the decision. Rasmussen did not go to flag mast, and his firing “is administrative, at this point,” she added.
Rasmussen was scheduled to hand over command in about a month, Campbell said. He was temporarily reassigned, but no other details were available.
Cmdr. Dave Haas, who was slated to replace Rasmussen this spring, took command of the ship Thursday, she said. “He was already scheduled to have a change of command within a month or two,” she noted.
His firing came about a week after he and Thach’s crew were recognized by the White House Office of National Drug Control Policy for interdiction missions during their six-month deployment in 2006 to Central and South America.Tough stuff.
During a Feb. 19 ceremony aboard the ship, Patrick M. Ward, the acting director for supply reduction, cited Thach’s crew for interdicting 29 tons of cocaine, the most of any Navy asset that year, and presented the United States Interdiction Coordinator Award and special coins to 50 crew members.
“We were extremely fortunate to be part of such a robust and capable team. Everyone in the process worked tirelessly to complete these operations in a safe and effective manner,” Rasmussen said, according to a Feb. 27 Navy News article about the ceremony.
Hat tip Bill.
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