A generator failure left the USS Benfold powerless for four days last month, disrupting food service, sanitation, air conditioning and drinking water as the destroyer waited for help in the South China Sea.
The outage aboard the USS Benfold, an Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyer, began July 24 after an engineering casualty involving the ship’s generators, U.S. 7th Fleet told USNI News, which first reported the incident.
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No sailors were injured. But the failure left the nearly 10,000-ton warship unable to maneuver under its own power.
The Navy — which did not publicly acknowledge the incident for more than three weeks — said the cause remains under investigation.
Basic systems failed at sea
The power loss affected some of the ship’s most basic services: galley operations, toilets, air conditioning and potable water.
The USS Robert Smalls, a cruiser attached to the George Washington Carrier Strike Group, helped provide meals for the Benfold’s crew. Other parts of the strike group also supported the destroyer while contractor tugboats towed it to Subic Bay in the Philippines.
The Benfold arrived there July 28 and was met by personnel from the Ship Repair Facility-Japan Regional Maintenance Center. Crew members were moved into contracted lodging off the ship the next day.
Power was restored July 30. Repairs were completed by Aug. 7, and the destroyer left Subic Bay on Aug. 8.
The ship later pulled into Yokosuka, Japan, where 7th Fleet said it remained in port.
Carrier group moves on
The Benfold had been sailing with the George Washington Carrier Strike Group before the outage.
The rest of the carrier group continued through the Malacca Strait without the Benfold, USNI News reported. The outlet said the ships appeared to be headed toward the Middle East. CNN reported that the George Washington strike group is moving to relieve the USS Abraham Lincoln, which has been heavily used during operations tied to the Iran war.
Another destroyer power problem
The Benfold was not the only recent U.S. destroyer to lose power in the Indo-Pacific.
In May, the USS Higgins lost power and propulsion for several hours after an engineering problem in its electrical system. The Navy did not specify where that incident occurred.
Both ships are Arleigh Burke-class destroyers, a major part of the Navy’s surface fleet. More than 70 are in service, and the ships routinely carry crews of more than 300 sailors.
A fleet under pressure
The Benfold outage comes as the Navy faces scrutiny over how heavily the Trump administration is using the fleet.
The Washington Post reported that operations in Latin America and the Middle East have required commanders to extend some warships beyond planned deployments and maintenance schedules. In the Middle East, dozens of ships have supported the war against Iran and a blockade of Iranian ports.
The USS Abraham Lincoln has also drawn attention after more than 200 days without a port call, a modern U.S. naval record. Sailors aboard the carrier have reported poor morale, food problems and sanitation issues. Adm. Brad Cooper, the head of U.S. Central Command, recently visited the carrier after concerns surfaced about conditions aboard.
Another carrier, the USS Gerald R. Ford, experienced a fire and toilet-system problem before returning to port in Norfolk, Virginia, in May.
The Ford returned after a 326-day deployment and entered scheduled maintenance at Norfolk Naval Shipyard in July. During its time at sea, the carrier experienced a laundry-room fire that injured sailors and recurring plumbing problems involving its nearly 650 toilets.
