More than 200 sailors moved off aircraft provider after a number of suicides

The sailors are moving to an area Navy installation because the nuclear-powered aircraft provider continues to undergo a years-long refueling and overhaul process on the shipyard in Newport Information in Virginia. Over the previous 12 months, seven members of the crew have died, including 4 by suicide, prompting the Navy to open an investigation into the command local weather and culture on board the Nimitz-class service.

The commanding officer of the service, Capt. Brent Gaut, made the decision to allow sailors dwelling on board the ship to maneuver to other lodging, in response to an announcement from Naval Air Force Atlantic. On the first day of the transfer, which started Monday, greater than 200 sailors left the provider and moved to a close-by Navy facility.

"The move plan will proceed until all Sailors who wish to transfer off-ship have carried out so," the assertion said. Though the service does not have its full complement of roughly 5,000 sailors, the ship still has between 2,000 and three,000 sailors residing aboard through the overhaul process.

The ship's command is working to determine sailors who may "benefit from and want the help companies and Morale, Welfare, and Recreation (MWR) programs" which might be out there on native Navy amenities. The Navy is within the strategy of establishing "short-term accommodations" for these sailors, in line with an earlier statement from Naval Air Force Atlantic.

"Management is actively implementing these and pursuing quite a lot of extra morale and private well-being measures and support companies to members assigned to USS George Washington."

Results from the Navy's investigation into the deaths are anticipated this week, Admiral John Meier, the commander of US Naval Air Drive Atlantic, advised reporters throughout a media roundtable on Tuesday.

"We've assigned an investigating officer to look into that and to really to look into the proximate trigger. Was there an immediate trigger? Was there a linkage between these events? I count on that to report out this week, and I will not presuppose the result of that report," Meier said.

The investigation is one among two the US Navy is conducting. The second investigation has a "a lot broader scope" and focuses on "command climate, command culture," Meier stated.

To reply to the three suicides in April, the Navy added assets to the ship, including a "ship psychologist," "resiliency counselors," and "a 13-person sprint crew, which is a particular intervention staff for cases like this," Meier said.

The dash group was "on board for a complete week, and they put out a report that identified some things to add to our investigative work," Meier added.

The deaths aboard the provider prompted Rep. Elaine Luria, a 20-year Navy veteran whose district encompasses multiple military services, to put in writing a letter to the Chief of Naval Operations, Admiral Michael Gilday, demanding immediate motion to ensure the security of the crew.

"Each of these deaths is a tragedy, and the number of incidents inside a single command, which includes as many as 4 sailors taking their own lives, raises significant concern that requires instant and stringent inquiry," Luria wrote final week, noting that her workplace has acquired complaints about the quality of life aboard the ship and a poisonous atmosphere.