The Navy removed a post on its official Instagram account Wednesday, April 10, 2024, showing a warship commander firing a rifle with a backward scope. (U.S. Navy)
The Marine Corps schooled the Navy over social media Wednesday after the sea service uploaded a photo of an officer firing an improperly configured rifle.
The Navy posted to its official Instagram account a now-deleted photo of Cmdr. Cameron Yaste, skipper of the guided-missile destroyer USS John S. McCain, holding a rifle and looking through a scope that was clearly mounted backward.
The weapon’s foregrip was also mounted strangely, positioned closer to the gun’s center than its barrel.
“From engaging in practice gun shoots, conducting maintenance, testing fuel purity and participating in sea and anchor details, the #USNavy is always ready to serve and protect,” the post said.
Social media users quickly jumped at the chance to poke fun at the error.
“Dear U.S. Navy. The scope is on backwards,” wrote X user @travisakers. “This is why we have Marines on ships.”
The Marine Corps appeared to take its own dig at the Navy, sharing a photo on its social media accounts of a Marine firing a weapon aboard the amphibious assault ship USS Boxer. The caption read: “Clear Sight Picture.”
This image, captioned “Clear Sight Picture,” was posted to the Marine Corps’ official X account Wednesday, April 10, 2024, after the Navy removed a similar social media image with a backward scope. (U.S. Marine Corps)
On his official X account, Rep. Mike Collins, R-Ga., posted a picture of a pistol with its barrel and grip on backward. The caption read: “Navy’s newly issued sidearm.”
Others noted that even action movies rarely make such errors.
“Even Hollywood gets this right,” wrote X user @matthewdmarsden. “We are doomed.”
Though the Navy ultimately deleted the post, X users continue to share screenshots.
“Thank you for pointing out our rifle scope error in the previous post,” the Navy later wrote on various social media accounts. “Picture has been removed until EMI [extra military instruction] is completed.”
The Navy defines EMI as “instruction in a phase of military duty in which an individual is deficient, and is intended for and directed towards the correction of that deficiency.”
The John S. McCain was operating in the U.S. 7th Fleet’s operations area when the photo was taken. The command referred questions to the Navy’s Chief Information Officer, who did not immediately respond to an emailed request for comment early Thursday.
