SAN DIEGO (AP/Stars and Stripes) — The Navy has fired the commander of a San Diego-based ship for inappropriate behavior considered unduly familiar toward crew members, a spokesman said Monday.
The Navy said it was investigating but would not elaborate on the allegations against Capt. David Schnell, who had been the commander of the USS Peleliu, a ship with 19 helicopters shuttling supplies to flood-devastated Pakistan. Schnell is the 12th commanding officer to be relieved in 2010.
Navy spokesman Lt. Cmdr. Chris Servello said he cannot provide any more details about the firing because of privacy concerns. He also declined to say how many crew members were involved.
Servello said Schnell had left the ship and was in the Middle East and would be traveling back to San Diego, where he would work in a Naval office doing administrative work.
Schnell could not be reached for comment. The Navy said it doesn't provide the media with e-mails or telephone numbers for service members.
Schnell was replaced by Capt. Mark E. Cedrun, who will continue the ship's Pakistan mission.
The Navy removed seven commanding officers between Jan. 1 and March 15. Seventeen commanders were relieved in 2009.
Reasons for the firings have ranged from public alcohol abuse and prostitute solicitation to running a ship into a pier.
The Navy's highest profile removal this year came when Holly Graf, the captain of the USS Cowpens, was removed for "cruelty and maltreatment" toward the sailors under her command.
Copyright 2010 The Associated Press.
