Sub's top enlisted sailor fired after DUI arrest

HONOLULU – The top enlisted sailor on a Pearl Harbor-based nuclear submarine has been fired after his arrest on a drunken driving charge.

Senior Chief Petty Officer Savan Patel was relieved as chief of the boat on the USS Louisville on Jan. 5 by the vessel's top officer, Cmdr. Lee Sisco.

The Pacific Fleet Submarine Force told The Honolulu Star-Advertiser that Sisco had lost confidence in Patel's ability to serve.

Police arrested the 32-year-old Patel on Jan. 4 after he was stopped on the H-1 freeway. He posted $500 bail and was released.

Patel has served on three Los Angeles-class submarines before his 2009 assignment to the 361-foot Louisville in charge of 150 enlisted sailors.

Neither he nor his lawyer could be reached for comment.

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Information from: Honolulu Star-Advertiser, http://www.staradvertiser.com