Brett E. Crozier | |
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| Birth name | Brett Elliott Crozier |
| Born | (1970-02-24)February 24, 1970 (age 55) Santa Rosa, California, U.S. |
| Allegiance | United States |
| Branch | United States Navy |
| Years of service | 1992–2022 |
| Rank | Captain |
| Commands | USS Theodore Roosevelt (CVN-71) USS Blue Ridge (LCC-19) VFA-94 |
| Battles / wars | Iraq War |
| Awards | Legion of Merit (3) |
Brett Elliott Crozier (born February 24, 1970) is a retiredcaptain in theUnited States Navy. AUnited States Naval Academy graduate, he became anaval aviator, first flying helicopters and then switching to fighters. After completingnaval nuclear training, he served as an officer on several aircraft carriers. In spring 2020, he wascommanding officer of theaircraft carrierUSS Theodore Roosevelt whenCOVID-19 broke out among the crew.[1] He was relieved of command by then-actingSecretary of the NavyThomas Modly after sending a letter to Navy leaders asking that most of the crew be taken ashore which was subsequently leaked to the press.[2][3][4] Crozier himself was also later diagnosed with the virus. He was reassigned to a shore position and retired in March 2022.
Brett Elliott Crozier[5] grew up inSanta Rosa, California. He graduated fromSanta Rosa High School in 1988[6][7] and then entered theUnited States Naval Academy inAnnapolis, Maryland.[8] He graduated from the academy in 1992. He received hismaster's degree in National Security and Strategic Studies from theNaval War College inNewport, Rhode Island in 2007, and completedNuclear Power School inGoose Creek, South Carolina in 2014.[9]
Crozier was designated anaval aviator in 1994 and was assigned as aSikorsky SH-60 Seahawk pilot to the squadronHSL-37 atBarbers Point,Hawaii. He deployed on boardUSS Crommelin andUSS Fletcher for operations in the Pacific Ocean andOperation Southern Watch in thePersian Gulf.[10]
In 1999, Crozier served inNavy Personnel Command as anaviation detailer and retention program manager[clarify]. He then shifted to flying theF/A-18 Hornet. In 2002, he reported toStrike Fighter Squadron 97 (VFA-97), the "Warhawks"; the following year, the squadron deployed withUSS Nimitz in support ofOperation Iraqi Freedom (OIF).[10]
In 2004, Crozier reported toStrike Fighter Squadron 94 (VFA-94), another F/A-18 Hornet unit known as the Mighty Shrikes, as a department head, and was again deployed withNimitz in 2005. In 2006, Crozier was assigned toVFA-125, the "Rough Raiders," and served as an instructor and Fleet Replacement Squadron Operations Officer. The following year, he reported in 2007 to the Naval War College, where he earned a master's degree in National Security and Strategic Studies.
Crozier later served as theexecutive officer, thencommanding officer (CO) of VFA-94, based at Naval Station Lemoore in California. As squadron CO, he made multiple deployments for U.S.Third,Fifth, andSeventh Fleet operations, numerous exercises and Operations Southern Watch and OIF.[10] He led his squadron on expeditionary deployments withMarine Aircraft Group 12 fromMarine Corps Air Station Iwakuni, Japan, to support Pacific operations and the Afghan and Iraq Wars. His squadron CO tour ended in August 2010.
Crozier then reported toNaval Striking and Support Forces NATO inNaples, Italy, and served as the lead air planner forJoint Task Force Odyssey Dawn and Combined Joint Task Force Deputy Director of Targeting for NATO'sOperation Unified Protector, both in Libya.[10]
From April 2014 until July 2016, Crozier completed the naval nuclear power training program and served as the executive officer ofUSS Ronald Reagan. During this tour,Ronald Reagan took part inRIMPAC 2014, twomaintenance availabilities[clarify], a forward deployment toYokosuka, Japan, to relieveUSS George Washington as the U.S. Navy's only forward-deployed aircraft carrier, and several Forward Deployed Naval Force deployments in theUnited States Indo-Pacific Command area of responsibility.[10] From June 2017 to November 2018, he commanded theamphibious command shipUSS Blue Ridge while the ship completed an extensivedry-dockrefit and then returned to operations at sea.[10] He was assigned command of thenuclearaircraft carrierUSS Theodore Roosevelt on November 1, 2019.[11]
Crozier was captain ofTheodore Roosevelt, then deployed in the Pacific, on March 24, 2020, when three members of the crew tested positive forCOVID-19. The next day, eight sailors were infected, and within a few days it was "dozens." The sailors became ill after more than two weeks at sea.[a] The initial cases were airlifted to a military hospital.[16]Theodore Roosevelt was ordered toGuam, where she docked on March 27, and all 4,865[17] aboard were ordered to be tested for the virus.[18][19] About 100 affected sailors were offloaded, and the rest of the crew remained on board. Crozier wanted to have most of the crew immediately taken ashore, saying it was impossible to prevent the spread of the virus in the close quarters of the ship. However, his superior,Rear AdmiralStuart P. Baker, believed that to be impractical and too drastic.[20]
On March 30, Crozier emailed a four-page memorandum to ten Naval officers. Three were admirals in his chain of command, including his immediate commander Rear Admiral Baker, AdmiralJohn Aquilino, the commander of thePacific Fleet, and Vice AdmiralDeWolfe Miller III,commander of naval air forces in the Pacific. Crozier copied the message to seven other captains, five of whom were on board the Roosevelt and two who were executive assistants to the admirals.[21] Crozier did not email Vice AdmiralWilliam R. Merz, who was higher than Baker in Crozier's chain of command.[22] In the memorandum, Crozier pleaded for authorization to have most of the crew evacuated and quarantined ashore, citing the impossibility of followingCDC recommendations on social distancing and quarantine procedures on theRoosevelt, a ship more crowded than thecruise shipDiamond Princess infected earlier.[23] On March 31, the letter was leaked to theSan Francisco Chronicle, which published it.[23] On April 1, the Navy ordered the aircraft carrier evacuated, with a skeleton crew to remain aboard to maintain thenuclear reactors, the fire-fighting equipment, and thegalley.[18]
On April 2, 2020, Crozier was relieved of command by actingSecretary of the NavyThomas Modly. At the time of his removal, 114 of 4,865 crew members had tested positive for the coronavirus.[24][25][26] As he disembarked, sailors cheered him and chanted his name; videos of the scene were posted to Twitter and subsequently picked up by major news organizations.[27][28]
Crozier himself reportedly began showing symptoms of coronavirus before he was relieved, according to two of his Naval Academy classmates. He was placed in quarantine in Guam.[29] Crozier was replaced by the interim commander Captain Carlos A. Sardiello.[12]
At aPentagon news conference on April 3, Modly said that Crozier had "raised alarm bells unnecessarily" and showed "extremely poor judgment."[30] Modly mischaracterized the distribution list of the memorandum, inaccurately claiming that Crozier had copied 20 to 30 other people; Crozier in fact sent the memo to ten officers.[22][31]
In an April 4 interview with radio hostHugh Hewitt, Modly criticized Crozier's decision to send the letter to what he characterized as "a large list of other people," adding "And that, to me, just represented just extremely poor judgment, because once you do that in this digital era, you know that there is no way that you can control where that information's going to go."[32]
A joint statement from four Democrats on theHouse Armed Services Committee, including the committee chair, RepresentativeAdam Smith ofWashington, said that Crozier "did not handle the immense pressure appropriately" but that he "was justifiably concerned about the health and safety of his crew" and "relieving him of his command is an overreaction."[33] PresidentDonald Trump criticized Crozier's letter on April 4, saying "I thought it was terrible, what he did, to write a letter. This isn't a class on literature. This is a captain of a massive ship that's nuclear-powered."[34]Joe Biden criticized Crozier's dismissal, saying: "I think it's close to criminal, the way they're dealing with this guy. ... he should have a commendation, rather than be fired."[35]
Modly, Defense SecretaryMark Esper, andChief of Naval Operations AdmiralMichael Gilday each defended the decision to remove Crozier,[36][37] although Gilday and GeneralMark A. Milley, thechairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, had each advised Modly not to proceed until a Navy investigation into the matter had been completed.[12] Modly said that there was noWhite House pressure when the decision was made to remove Crozier.[36] On April 6, Modly visited the ship in person and made a speech to the crew over the ship's public address system. In it, he excoriated Crozier, saying he was "too naïve or too stupid to be a commanding officer" if he did not realize that the letter would be leaked to the media. An audio recording and transcript of Modly's speech was leaked to the media within hours.[38] Later that day, Modly apologized for the comment.[39] The following day, he resigned his position.[40]
The Navy conducted an internal preliminary investigation into theTheodore Roosevelt affair, conducted by AdmiralRobert P. Burke, theVice Chief of Naval Operations. The investigation centered on the circumstances surrounding Crozier's firing and whether "a breakdown in communications" had taken place.[12] The investigation did not examine why theTheodore Roosevelt went ahead with the scheduled four-day port call inDa Nang, Vietnam, beginning on March 5, despitereported coronavirus cases in the country at that time, a decision that Navy officials defended.[12]
One crew member,Chief Petty Officer Charles Robert Thacker Jr., died of the virus on April 13.[41]
The findings of the Navy's preliminary investigation went to Gilday, and on April 15, it was reported that Gilday was considering reinstating Crozier as captain of theTheodore Roosevelt.[12] Gilday confirmed that he was not ruling out reinstatement. A reinstatement of a dismissed captain would be unprecedented in the Navy.[42]
By April 17, 94% of theTheodore Roosevelt's crew had been tested for COVID-19, with 660 sailors testing positive for the virus,[15] an infection rate greater than 14%.[22] Of the sailors who tested positive, some 60% wereasymptomatic, suggesting a high level of "stealth transmission" of the virus.[43] TheTheodore Roosevelt returned to sea on May 21, after being sidelined for nearly two months in Guam.[44]
After the initial inquiry Gilday and the actingSecretary of the Navy,James E. McPherson, recommended on April 24 that Crozier be reinstated as captain of theTheodore Roosevelt.[45] However, Defense Secretary Esper delayed a decision pending a "deeper review" of the situation. In the interim, Crozier was reassigned to San Diego, where he served as the special assistant to theNaval Air Forces chief of staff.[46]
A second Navy inquiry, whose results were announced on June 19, concluded that Crozier and Baker made poor decisions regarding the coronavirus outbreak, so that Crozier would not be restored to command of the ship, and Baker's scheduled promotion would be put on hold.[47] The remotely conducted investigation criticized Crozier for his planning of how to move sailors off the ship, waiting for hotel rooms to open up instead of fully using available base facilities, and not strictly following social distancing rules onboard a densely crewed ship. Democratic senatorsRichard Blumenthal andChris Van Hollen questioned the conclusion, saying that the Navy was retroactively applying current anti-COVID-19 best practices to a situation at the start of the pandemic to justify the dismissal.[48]
Crozier retired from the Navy in March 2022.[48][49] He lives inCalifornia, and is currently thechief executive officer of LTA Research developing next generation airships.[50]
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| External videos | |
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 Presentation by Crozier onSurf When You Can, June 20, 2023,C-SPAN |
In 2023, Crozier wrote a memoir,Surf When You Can: Lessons in Life, Loyalty, and Leadership from a Maverick Navy Captain, in which he describes how surfing has helped him balance his life. He told Joe Garofoli of theSan Francisco Chronicle: "The more time I've spent with family, friends—things outside of work—the better I could focus and the better I could perform at work."[51][50]
Crozier also spoke to a video interview withNavy Times, discussing the book and his time in the Navy.[52] Crozier has been interviewed by several media outlets.[53][54][55]
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