Cmdr. Cameron Yaste, who made waves in April with a mis-mounted site during target practice, was relieved for "loss of confidence."
By Matt White
Posted on Aug 30, 2024 12:32 PM EDT
4 minute read
The Navy fired the commanding officer of the USS John S. McCain for what it termed “a loss of confidence in his ability to command the guided-missile destroyer.”
Cmdr. Cameron Yaste, who has commanded the Arleigh Burke-class destroyer since October 2023, was relieved of command during its current deployment in the Middle East, where it has been operating since April while assigned to the U.S. Fifth Fleet.
No details were available on why Yaste was removed from command. All branches of the military routinely use the phrase “loss of confidence” when announcing the firing of senior leaders, who can be removed for a wide range of issues, from poor performance and leadership to bad behavior off-duty.
Yaste briefly became an unwitting social media topic when McCain officials released a photo of him firing an M-4 rifle from the ship with the optic mounted backward.
“The Navy holds commanding officers to the highest standards and holds them accountable when those standards are not met. Naval leaders are entrusted with significant responsibilities to their Sailors and their ships,” the Navy said in a release.
As a destroyer equipped with the Aegis Combat System, the McCain, which is homeported in Naval Station Everett, Washington, was in line to play a major role in the surface-to-air fight against Houthi missiles launched at commercial ships in the region.
According to an online bio, Yaste is a native of Knoxville, Tennessee. He joined the Navy after graduating from The Citadel through Naval ROTC in 2006. He also attended the Naval Post Graduate School where he earned a master of science in astronautics. He previously served aboard the destroyer USS Hopper, and amphibious landing ship USS Bataan and as the McCain’s executive officer prior to taking command.
A high-profile ship
The USS John S. McCain has been involved in several high-profile episodes over its 30 years at sea.
In August 2017, the ship collided with a Liberian-flagged tanker off the coast of Singapore near the Strait of Malacca. Ten sailors were killed and the crew fought for days to keep the ship afloat as it limped to port. The entire leadership team on the ship was fired in the aftermath, and the captain was fined by the Navy after taking responsibility.
The ship was also at the center of a public conflict between Navy officials and officials in President Donald Trump’s administration in 2019. During a visit to Yokosuka, Japan — then the ship’s home port — White House officials encouraged Navy officials to keep the ship out of sight due to his long-standing feud with the then-late Sen. John S. McCain, the namesakes of the ship. Trump officials denied the request but Trump later confirmed it in public statements.
The ship also holds a higher public profile because of its well-known name, though its namesakes are commonly confused. Though the late Arizona Senator and 2008 Presidential candidate John S. McCain III was one of the best-known American politicians of the last several decades, the ship’s name, until 2018, officially honored just his father and grandfather, John S. McCain Sr. and Jr. The father-son pair were both four-star admirals in the 20th century with combined service to the Navy that spanned 70 years, from 1902, when McCain Sr. entered the Naval Academy, to McCain Jr’s retirement in 1972. As a senior admiral during World War II, McCain Sr. pushed the Navy into adopting aircraft carriers and airpower as the heart of how the service fought wars.
The first ship to bear their names was launched in 1953. The current USS John S. McCain launched in 1994.
In 2018, just months before Sen. McCain’s death, the Navy rededicated the current ship to refer to all three generations of the McCains. Along with his political standing, Sen. McCain’s Navy career is perhaps better known than either his father’s or grandfather’s. The younger McCain spent seven years in a Vietnam POW camp before leaving the service as a captain and entering politics.
Update: 8/30/2024; This article has been updated with additional information about USS John S. McCain.
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