Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyer USS Dewey (DDG-105), front, and Nimitz-class aircraft carrier USS Carl Vinson (CVN-70) transit the Pacific Ocean on June 13, 2021. US Navy Photo
This post is part of a series looking back at the top naval stories from 2021.
Naval operations this year once again saw the United States Navy balancing presence in multiple theaters, as the U.S. withdrew from the war in Afghanistan and continued emphasizing the Indo-Pacific region. Read More
A San Diego Federal Fire firefighter rests after combating a fire aboard the amphibious assault ship USS Bonhomme Richard (LHD-6) on July 12, 2020. US Navy Photo
SAN DIEGO – An expert in electrical engineering told a Navy court that an electrical short in a forklift or some faulty batteries could have sparked the fire that ultimately led the service to scrap the former USS Bonhomme Richard (LHD-6), countering the Navy’s acceptance from a federal fire investigation that a disgruntled sailor deliberately set it. Read More
Sailors and Federal San Diego Firefighters equip gear before providing firefighting assistance aboard USS Bonhomme Richard (LHD-6) on the morning of July 13, 2020. US Navy Photo
This post has been updated to correct the rank for Ryan Mays.
SAN DIEGO – One petty officer’s accusation against a shipmate is at the center of the Navy’s criminal case against the junior sailor charged with deliberately lighting a fire last year that caused the service to scrap the former USS Bonhomme Richard (LHD-6). Read More
Fire aboard USS Bonhomme Richard (LHD-6) at Naval Base San Diego on July 12, 2020. US Navy Photo
SAN DIEGO – The fire that eventually destroyed much of the former USS Bonhomme Richard (LHD-6) likely was deliberately set to ignite cardboard boxes in a stowage area packed with assorted items that fire investigators ruled out as the ignition source, a federal fire investigator testified in a Navy court Monday.
Sailors rest after firefighting on the morning of July 13, 2020 aboard USS Bonhomme Richard (LHD 6). US Navy Photo
This story has been updated to clarify that the Navy made the decision to scrap the former USS Bonhomme Richard (LHD-6) last year, not earlier this year.
SAN DIEGO, Calif. – Navy prosecutors will make their case to a military officer this week as to why a junior sailor should be court-martialed on charges that he deliberately set the 2020 fire that eventually gutted the former USS Bonhomme Richard (LHD-6) and intentionally put others in danger at Naval Base San Diego.
U.S. Navy Sailors transit the hangar bay towards a simulated fire during an in-port emergency drill aboard the aircraft carrier USS John C. Stennis (CVN 74) in Norfolk, Virginia, Oct. 24, 2020. US Navy Photo
After losing an amphibious warship to a fire, the Navy will elevate the head of service safety to a two-star billet and create a new oversight board meant to improve fire safety throughout the fleet. Read More
The following are the command investigation into the July 12, 2020 fire aboard the former USS Bonhomme Richard (LHD-6) and the Major Fires Review. The pair of reports were released on Oct. 20. Read More
Sailors evacuated from USS Bonhomme Richard (LHD-6) on July 12, 2020. US Navy Photo
A cascade of failures – from a junior enlisted sailor not recognizing a fire at the end of their duty watch to fundamental problems with how the U.S. Navy trains sailors to fight fires in shipyards – are responsible for the five-day blaze that cost the service an amphibious warship, according to an investigation into the July 2020 USS Bonhomme Richard (LHD-6) fire reviewed by USNI News. Read More
Damage Controlman 2nd Class Aracely Morales, center, assigned to San Antonio-class amphibious transport dock ship USS Arlington (LPD-24), trains sailors assigned to San Antonio-class amphibious transport dock ship USS Fort Lauderdale (LPD-28) on Aug. 14, 2021. US Na
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ABOARD THE LITTORAL COMBAT SHIP USS KANSAS CITY, OFF THE COAST OF CALIFORNIA – The Navy has made several adjustments to its practices aboard surface ships and at shipyards in the wake of the fire that gutted an amphibious warship last year. Read More
An MH-60S Seahawk helicopter from the “Merlins” of Helicopter Sea Combat Squadron (HSC) 3, provides aerial firefighting support alongside sailors and civilian fire crews on the ground to fight the fire aboard amphibious assault ship USS Bonhomme Richard (LHD-6) on July 13, 2020. US Navy Photo
A federal search warrant filing was unsealed this week in the case of a sailor the Navy officially charged last week with setting the fire that devastated the former USS Bonhomme Richard (LHD-6), rendering the amphibious assault ship unsalvageable. Read More
