Waddle: I'll carry burden 'to my grave'

Waddle told CNN's Larry King that he got ahead of his crew

In this story: Sub's teamwork failed Accident caused review of procedures RELATED STORIES, SITES

NEW YORK (CNN) -- Capt. Scott Waddle choked back tears Thursday as he recounted watching the USS Greeneville go out to sea without him this month.

He said he would travel to Japan in late May to meet with the families of the nine people killed when the Navy sub he commanded hit a Japanese fishing trawler.

In an interview on CNN's Larry King Live, Waddle said he stood in his front yard and watched the newly-repaired sub leave the port of Pearl Harbor.

"As the vessel passed, the captain sounded the whistle for six seconds: one last goodbye," he said. "I was in my (uniform) whites, a very difficult moment for me, to not be part of that. To see a ship I commanded go to sea."

"And that's my family going to sea," Waddle added, his voice breaking.

VIDEO U.S. Navy Commander Scott Waddle describes the day of the submarine accident to CNN's Larry King (April 26) Play video (QuickTime, Real or Windows Media)    AUDIO Journalist Peter Hadfield reports on the Japanese perspective on Waddle's reprimand 464K/42 sec. AIFF or WAV sound    IN-DEPTH Collision at sea  • Key facts  • Waddle's statement  • Description of ascent maneuver  • Key players  • Civilians on board  • Images of sunken ship  • Court of Inquiry description  • Unofficial hearing transcript  • Message board

The skipper of the Greeneville lost his command of the sub almost immediately after the February 9 accident off the coast of Hawaii. For his actions, Waddle, 41, received a career-ending written reprimand Monday from Pacific Fleet Commander Adm. Thomas Fargo. The punishment was handed down at an "admiral's mast" administrative hearing.

Waddle told King that in late May, the Navy would send him to Japan so that he could apologize in person to all of the family members of the victims, as well as to the principal of the Ehime Maru high school, which owned the vessel.

Four students from the school were among the dead.

Waddle said he would never forgive himself for what happened.

"I cannot, and as I said to the families, this is a burden that I will bring to my grave," he said, referring to meetings he held with some of the family members during the Navy's court of inquiry into the accident.

"This is something that will remain with me for the rest of my life," he said, adding that although he has not yet seen a psychologist "it doesn't mean that I won't."

Sub's teamwork failed

Waddle also recounted the events leading up to the fatal collision, saying the fundamental cause was a failure in teamwork, for which he was primarily responsible.

"I took actions at the time that I thought were prudent, but in hindsight, were not," Waddle said. "And for an eight-minute period... I got ahead of my crew ... meaning that I was confident that I understand by situational awareness what the contact situation was, that contacts were distant -- seven miles away from the ship.

"Unbeknownst to me, the Ehime Maru was bearing down on us at a rate of about 15 knots."

He said another factor that may have contributed to the accident was the interruption of a briefing before the sub performed the emergency ascent procedure.

"If I had held the brief, it would have been clear to both the officer of the deck and myself that the two contacts we thought we were tracking -- one of them was new," he said. "We could have done something about it."

Accident caused review of procedures

In comments Monday, Pacific Fleet Commander Adm. Thomas Fargo said the accident shouldn't have happened.

larger   The USS Greeneville was performing an emergency drill when it hit a trawler

"This collision was solely the fault of the USS Greeneville," Fargo said.

"This tragic accident could and should have been avoided by simply following existing Navy standards and procedures in bringing submarines to the surface."

Fargo could have recommended a court martial for Waddle but said he didn't because the court of inquiry did not produce "any evidence of criminal intent or deliberate misconduct" on the part of the sub's commander.

Waddle said he thinks some good has come out of the whole situation.

"It's caused us to review some of our procedures and processes in the Navy," he said. "It's also drawn our two cultures a little bit closer together and has identified the importance of the United States military presence in Asia, for not only economic stability but global stability, and in view of this current issue that's happened in China, I think that's very clear now."

Waddle is expected to hand in his retirement from the Navy before October 1, and said he's looking for civilian work in "personal management, technical issues, non-technical issues, education."

Greeneville's skipper reprimanded, allowed to retire
April 23, 2001
Navy to explain inquiry to Ehime Maru families
April 20, 2001
No court-martial for sub skipper, panel recommends
April 15, 2001
USS Greeneville heads to sea for first time since accident
April 11, 2001

NTSB transcripts: Greeneville/Ehime Maru 031201
CINCPACFLT : USS Greeneville (SSN 772) incident
City of Uwajima's memorial site
U.S. Navy

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