Modly steps down as acting US Navy Secretary

Acting Secretary of the Navy Thomas Modly has submitted his resignation to US Secretary of Defense Mark Esper.

The US Department of Defense (DoD) confirmed that Esper accepted the resignation on 7 April and that Modly will be replaced by current Army Undersecretary Jim McPherson.

It comes after Modly removed the captain, Brett Crozier, from command of the coronavirus-hit USS Theodore Roosevelt for writing a letter, raising concerns about the safety of the sailors on board, which was leaked to the San Francisco Chronicle.

Capt Crozier’s sacking led to a backlash from the Nimitz-class aircraft carrier’s 4,000-strong crew.

In a statement, Esper noted that Modly ‘resigned on his own accord, putting the Navy and the Sailors above self so that the USS Theodore Roosevelt, and the Navy as an institution, can move forward’.

McPherson is a retired admiral with 26 years of service in the USN. He is expected to remain as Acting Secretary of the Navy until a permanent replacement is found.