Military

Many warnings of readiness 'crisis' before latest ship accidents

Military leaders, Congress and government watchdogs have all warned for years that the military faces a possible readiness crisis as it has slashed training and maintenance to keep up with budget cuts and increased operations around the globe.

Monday's collision between USS John S. McCain and a tanker off the coast of Singapore — where one sailor was found dead and another nine are missing and presumed dead — has sparked a new round of questions about the Navy's readiness and training, as it's the fourth major collision for the Navy in the Pacific this year.

But the warnings about the military's readiness problems are nothing new, and the Navy isn't alone in seeing a spike in major non-combat incidents and fatalities.