A Navy captain has been stripped of duty after being caught on camera firing a gun with the scope facing the wrong way.
The Navy said in a statement that Cameron Yaste, who was in charge of the guided-missile destroyer USS John S. McCain, was fired on Friday “due to a loss of trust in his ability to lead the destroyer.”
The person who took over for Yaste was Rear Adm. Christopher Alexander, who was in charge of the Theodore Roosevelt Carrier Strike Group.
Reports say that Yaste fired while the warship was guarding the aircraft carrier USS Theodore Roosevelt in the Gulf of Oman. This mission happened during tense fighting in the Middle East.
It was Yaste’s job to lead the USS John S. McCain since October 2023.
The statement says, “The Navy holds commanding officers to the greatest standards and holds them responsible when those standards are not met.”
It also says that Yaste has been temporarily moved to Naval Surface Group Northwest. It’s been around four months since the picture went public on the U.S. Navy’s official Instagram. The Marine Corps account allegedly made fun of the Navy by posting a picture of a Marine shooting a gun on social media while they were on the USS Boxer, an amphibious attack ship. Stars and Stripes, a military news site, said the text said “Clear Sight Picture.”
Capt. Allison Christy, who is the assistant commodore of Destroyer Squadron 21, has taken over for Yaste for now. Part of the USS Abraham Lincoln Carrier Strike Group, that group is in the Gulf of Oman right now.
At the same time, people on X (Twitter) were skeptical about the facts of Yaste’s move.
“It’s hard for me to believe that a Navy Captain felt better after holding a gun with the scope on wrong. An M4 is not a T/O tool for a Navy Captain. He would never have to learn how to use that gun.” One person on X said, “There is something else going on here.”
Author:Â Blake Ambrose
