Brett Crozier

Brett Elliott Crozier (born February 24, 1970) is a retired captain in the United States Navy.

A United States Naval Academy graduate, he became a naval aviator, first flying helicopters and then switching to fighters.

After completing naval nuclear training, he served as an officer on several aircraft carriers.

He graduated from Santa Rosa High School in 1988 and then entered the United States Naval Academy in Annapolis, Maryland.

He graduated from the academy in 1992.

Crozier was designated a naval aviator in 1994 and was assigned as a Sikorsky SH-60 Seahawk pilot to the squadron HSL-37 at Barbers Point, Hawaii.

He deployed on board USS Crommelin (FFG-37) and USS Fletcher (DD-992) for operations in the Pacific Ocean and Operation Southern Watch in the Persian Gulf.

In 1999, Crozier served in Navy Personnel Command as an.

He then shifted to flying the FA-18 Hornet.

In 2002, he reported to Strike Fighter Squadron 97 (VFA-97), the "Warhawks"; the following year, the squadron deployed with USS Nimitz in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom (OIF).

In 2004, Crozier reported to Strike Fighter Squadron 94 (VFA-94), another F/A-18 Hornet unit known as the Mighty Shrikes, as a department head, and was again deployed with Nimitz in 2005.

In 2006, Crozier was assigned to VFA-125, the "Rough Raiders," and served as an instructor and Fleet Replacement Squadron Operations Officer.

He received his master's degree in National Security and Strategic Studies from the Naval War College in Newport, Rhode Island in 2007, and completed Nuclear Power School in Goose Creek, South Carolina in 2014.

The following year, he reported in 2007 to the Naval War College, where he earned a master's degree in National Security and Strategic Studies.

Crozier later served as the executive officer, then commanding officer (CO) of VFA-94, based at Naval Station Lemoore in California.

As squadron CO, he made multiple deployments for U.S. Third, Fifth, and Seventh Fleet operations, numerous exercises and Operations Southern Watch and OIF.

He led his squadron on expeditionary deployments with Marine Aircraft Group 12 from Marine Corps Air Station Iwakuni, Japan, to support Pacific operations and the Afghan and Iraq Wars.

His squadron CO tour ended in August 2010.

Crozier then reported to Naval Striking and Support Forces NATO in Naples, Italy, and served as the lead air planner for Joint Task Force Odyssey Dawn and Combined Joint Task Force Deputy Director of Targeting for NATO's Operation Unified Protector, both in Libya.

From April 2014 until July 2016, Crozier completed the naval nuclear power training program and served as the executive officer of USS Ronald Reagan.

During this tour, Ronald Reagan took part in RIMPAC 2014, two, a forward deployment to Yokosuka, Japan, to relieve USS George Washington (CVN-73) as the U.S. Navy's only forward-deployed aircraft carrier, and several Forward Deployed Naval Force deployments in the United States Indo-Pacific Command area of responsibility.

From June 2017 to November 2018, he commanded the amphibious command ship USS Blue Ridge (LCC-19) while the ship completed an extensive dry-dock refit and then returned to operations at sea.

He was assigned command of the nuclear aircraft carrier USS Theodore Roosevelt (CVN-71) on November 1, 2019.

In spring 2020, he was commanding officer of the aircraft carrier USS Theodore Roosevelt (CVN-71) when COVID-19 broke out among the crew.

He was relieved of command by then-acting Secretary of the Navy Thomas Modly after sending a letter to Navy leaders asking that most of the crew be taken ashore which was subsequently leaked to the press.

Crozier himself was also later diagnosed with the virus.

He was reassigned to a shore position and retired in March 2022.

Brett Elliott Crozier grew up in Santa Rosa, California.

Crozier was captain of Theodore Roosevelt, then deployed in the Pacific, on March 24, 2020, when three members of the crew tested positive for COVID-19.

The next day, eight sailors were infected, and within a few days it was "dozens."

The sailors became ill after more than two weeks at sea.

The initial cases were airlifted to a military hospital.

Theodore Roosevelt was ordered to Guam, where she docked on March 27, and all 4,865 aboard were ordered to be tested for the virus.

About 100 affected sailors were offloaded, and the rest of the crew remained on board.

Crozier wanted to have most of the crew immediately taken ashore, saying it was impossible to prevent the spread of the virus in the close quarters of the ship.

However, his superior, Rear Admiral Stuart P. Baker, believed that to be impractical and too drastic.

On March 30, Crozier emailed a four-page memorandum to ten Naval officers.

Three were admirals in his chain of command, including his immediate commander Rear Admiral Baker, Admiral John Aquilino, the commander of the Pacific Fleet, and Vice Admiral DeWolfe Miller III, commander of naval air forces in the Pacific.

Crozier copied the message to seven other captains, five of whom were on board the Roosevelt and two who were executive assistants to the admirals.

Crozier did not email Vice Admiral William R. Merz, who was higher than Baker in Crozier's chain of command.