Sunrise in Singapore on Aug. 21 came at 7:03. Nearly an hour and a half earlier, the guided-missile destroyer USS John S. McCain—named for Sen. John McCain’s father and grandfather, both admirals—collided with a Liberian-flagged tanker ship near the heavily traveled Strait of Malacca. Ten sailors died.

This was the fourth accident this year for the U.S. Seventh Fleet, headquartered in Yokosuka, Japan. In January a guided-missile cruiser, the USS Antietam, ran aground in a high tide and strong winds after dragging her anchor in Tokyo Bay. The Antietam’s commanding officer was subsequently relieved and reassigned to a post at fleet headquarters.

In May the USS Lake Champlain, another cruiser, collided with a South Korean fishing vessel east of the Korean Peninsula. The Navy crew had tried to signal the fishermen, who neither had a radio nor responded to the ship’s horn. No one was injured.

Then in June the USS Fitzgerald, a guided-missile destroyer, suffered significant damage in a collision with a Philippine-flagged container ship in the busy approaches to Tokyo Bay. Seven American sailors died. After an investigation, the ship’s commanding and executive officers were relieved.

Speculation that sabotage or hacking had anything to do with these accidents seems unfounded. Navy ships have personnel constantly at watch, both on and off the bridge, to spot nearby vessels and other potential dangers. Can Russia hack a sailor’s eyes?