Gaynor Dumat-ol Daleno

gdumat-ol@guampdn.com

The commanding officer of a fast-attack submarine homeported in Guam has been fired from his duties “due to a loss of confidence in his ability to command,” a Navy statement confirmed Wednesday.

Cmdr. Mike Conner was removed from his position as commander of the USS Oklahoma City, said Cmdr. Brook DeWalt, public affairs officer for the U.S. Pacific Fleet’s Submarine Force.

Conner was relieved of his command of the submarine on Jan. 6, Guam time.

“Commanding officers are required to possess and demonstrate the highest levels of responsibility, reliability and leadership,” DeWalt said.“Cmdr. Conner was removed due to a loss of confidence in his ability to meet those.”

Further details about the specific incident or incidents that led to Conner’s removal from his position were not immediately released to the public.

Conner had been in command of the Oklahoma City since December 2013.

Conner has been administratively reassigned to the office of Capt. Jeffrey Grimes, commander of the Submarine Squadron 15, which is based at Naval Base Guam, according to a Navy statement.

Oklahoma City was homeported in Guam beginning in March 2011.

It replaced the USS City of Corpus Christi, a fast-attack submarine that was transferred to Pearl Harbor, Hawaii.

This story is developing.