The U.S. Navy announced this week that the Seventh Fleet commander has been relieved of command due to a "loss of confidence."
Vice Adm. Joseph Aucoin was relieved of command in the wake of the most recent collision in the Pacific. On Monday, the USS John S. McCain collided with an oil tanker near Singapore.
Pacific Fleet Commander Adm. Scott Swift made the announcement in an official statement Tuesday.
Aucoin has been replaced by Rear Adm. Phil Sawyer, who has already been nominated and confirmed for the position. Sawyer assumed command immediately and was promoted to vice admiral.
The United States Seventh Fleet is based in Japan and includes both the USS John S. McCain and the USS Fitzgerald, another guided missile destroyer involved in a collision with a merchant vessel in June.
The Fitzgerald collision resulted in the death of seven Navy sailors, and the McCain collision has, to date, left 10 Navy sailors dead or missing. Several of the top officers aboard the Fitzgerald were relieved of shipboard duty.
Investigations are underway in both cases.