[Subpac didn't have a photo. I sent one I found on navy.mil. One hanging chad is that no relief was named in the firing release -- I have asked -- will update]
The commanding officer of the Guam-based fast attack submarine Oklahoma City was fired Jan. 6th for deficiencies in his leadership and proficiency in command.
Cmdr. Mike Conner was relieved of command of the forward-deployed submarine by his boss, Capt. Jeffrey Grimes, who commands Submarine Squadron 15, also based in Guam, because because of leadership and professional proficiency issues that led to a loss of Conner’s ability to command.
"Commanding officers are required to possess and demonstrate the highest levels of responsibility, reliability and leadership," said Cmdr. Brook Dewalt, spokesman for the Hawaii-based Submarine Forces, Pacific. "Cmdr. Conner was removed due to loss of confidence in his ability to meet those standards."
Conner, a native of Riverton, Wyoming, began his Navy career as an enlisted machinist's mate. He was selected for the Nuclear Enlisted Commissioning Program and attended the University of Idaho where he graduated in 1994 and was commissioned via Officer Candidate School in Pensacola, Fla.Florida.
As an officer, he first served first aboard the ballistic-missile submarine Kentucky, completing comeleting five strategic deterrent patrols. His second sea tour was aboard the fast attack submarine Corpus Christi followed by an executive officer tour onboard the fast attack submarine Miami.
Conner took command of Oklahoma City on Dec. 20, 2013, at Naval Base Point Loma, CaliforniaCalif., while the boat was in an extensive overhaul. He returned with OKC to Guam the following March.
DeWalt did not say who would assume command of the boat, only that Conner will remain in Guam with on the staff of Submarine Squadron 15.
No permanent relief has yet been named, Dewalt said.
"Pending arrival of a permanent relief in the coming months, Commander Patrick Friedman assumed command," he said. "He is former CO of USS Columbia, and a senior member of the tactical readiness evaluation team at SUBPAC."
Mark D. Faram is a former reporter for Navy Times. He was a senior writer covering personnel, cultural and historical issues. A nine-year active duty Navy veteran, Faram served from 1978 to 1987 as a Navy Diver and photographer.
