U.S. Navy Fires Capt. Wendel Penetrante, Capt. Edwin Catubig, and Master Chief Thomas Howell in Yokosuka

The U.S. Navy fired the commanding officer, executive officer, and senior enlisted leader of a ship repair facility in Yokosuka, Japan, with Capt. Wendel Penetrante, Capt. Edwin Catubig, and Master Chief Petty Officer Thomas Dean Howell relieved of their duties on Wednesday.

“When a fire burned aboard the world’s biggest aircraft carrier in March as it took part in operations against Iran, the US Navy released a short statement saying the blaze had been “contained,” that two sailors had received medical treatment for “non-life-threatening injuries” and that the carrier was “fully operational”

CNN

Task & Purpose reported that the three were all assigned to the U.S. Naval Ship Repair Facility and Japan Regional Maintenance Center, which provides intermediate-level and depot-level repair for Navy ships and U.S. 7th Fleet, and that Navy officials said they were relieved “due to a loss of confidence in their ability to command.”

CNN

The same report said the Navy news release provided no further details on the exact reason for the firings, and it noted that a May 12 Navy news release lauded the facility for returning seven ships—two mine countermeasures ships, three destroyers, and an amphibious transport dock—to the 7th Fleet this year “on time or ahead of schedule.”

Penetrante assumed command of the facility on Feb. 3, 2025, while Catubig and Howell were also described through their Navy biographies in the Task & Purpose account of the leadership shakeup.

The USS Gerald R. Ford returned to its homeport at Naval Station Norfolk in Virginia after 326 days on combat duty, according to خبرگزاری فارس, after the carrier participated in the war against Iran and Venezuela.

خبرگزاری فارس said the ship faced “numerous problems,” including a major fire and repeated failures of the sewage system, and it described the carrier’s return as bringing relief to about 4,500 sailors and crew who spent 326 days at sea.

CNN Arabic

CNN Arabic said the Ford is scheduled to return to its home port in Virginia on Saturday after nearly a year at sea, during which it participated in the mission to capture former Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro and endured a fire aboard and recurring problems with its plumbing systems.

CNN Arabic also quoted Amini Ossias, whose daughter works as an aviation electrical technician on board the Ford, saying: 'Now I can relax and catch my breath and return to normal sleep.'

CNN reported that video obtained by the outlet showed the March fire aboard the USS Gerald R. Ford was more severe and damaging than the Navy suggested, with bunks where sailors slept “totally destroyed.”

“The commanding officer, executive officer and senior enlisted leader of a Navy ship repair facility in Yokosuka, Japan, have been fired, service officials announced on Wednesday”

Task & Purpose

CNN also said the fire-suppression system failed to work, leaving sailors scrambling to put out the blaze, and it quoted a sailor describing the moment: “I seriously thought we were going to lose the ship.”

In the same CNN account, Chief of Naval Operations Adm. Daryl Caudle said in April that two days passed before the Ford was able to fly sorties again, and CNN reported the ship was forced to head to port in Greece for temporary repairs.

CNN added that roughly 600 sailors lost access to their bunks due to the damage, while the outlet said the Navy’s spokesperson told it, “The investigation of the fire is ongoing.”