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

The sailors are transferring to an area Navy installation because the nuclear-powered aircraft carrier continues to undergo a years-long refueling and overhaul process at the shipyard in Newport News in Virginia. Over the past 12 months, seven members of the crew have died, together with 4 by suicide, prompting the Navy to open an investigation into the command local weather and tradition on board the Nimitz-class provider.

The commanding officer of the provider, Capt. Brent Gaut, made the decision to allow sailors residing on board the ship to maneuver to other lodging, in accordance with a press release from Naval Air Force Atlantic. On the first day of the transfer, which began Monday, more than 200 sailors left the provider and moved to a nearby Navy facility.

"The transfer plan will continue till all Sailors who want to move off-ship have accomplished so," the assertion mentioned. Although the provider doesn't have its full complement of roughly 5,000 sailors, the ship still has between 2,000 and 3,000 sailors dwelling aboard in the course of the overhaul process.

The ship's command is working to identify sailors who might "benefit from and desire the assist services and Morale, Welfare, and Recreation (MWR) applications" that are obtainable on local Navy amenities. The Navy is in the process of organising "temporary accommodations" for these sailors, in response to an earlier statement from Naval Air Force Atlantic.

"Management is actively implementing these and pursuing a number of further morale and personal well-being measures and support services to members assigned to USS George Washington."

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

"We have assigned an investigating officer to look into that and to essentially to look into the proximate cause. Was there an immediate set off? Was there a linkage between these occasions? I expect that to report out this week, and I will not presuppose the result of that report," Meier stated.

The investigation is one of two the US Navy is conducting. The second investigation has a "a lot broader scope" and focuses on "command local weather, command culture," Meier mentioned.

To answer the three suicides in April, the Navy added assets to the ship, together with a "ship psychologist," "resiliency counselors," and "a 13-person dash group, which is a special intervention crew for situations like this," Meier mentioned.

The sprint workforce was "on board for a whole week, and they put out a report that recognized some things to add to our investigative work," Meier added.

The deaths aboard the service prompted Rep. Elaine Luria, a 20-year Navy veteran whose district encompasses a number of army services, to jot down a letter to the Chief of Naval Operations, Admiral Michael Gilday, demanding fast action to make sure the security of the crew.

"Each of these deaths is a tragedy, and the variety of incidents inside a single command, which incorporates as many as 4 sailors taking their own lives, raises vital concern that requires quick and stringent inquiry," Luria wrote final week, noting that her office has received complaints concerning the high quality of life aboard the ship and a toxic environment.