WASHINGTON, Feb. 26 (Xinhua) -- A shortage of 6,200 sailors has led the U.S. Navy to cancel two ship deployments, a senior Navy official told Congress on Tuesday.

One ship's deployment to the South Pacific was cancelled and one less vessel was sent to participate in the 2018 Rim of the Pacific exercise due to ongoing manning shortages and training problems, U.S. Pacific Fleet chief Admiral John Aquilino told a hearing before the House Armed Services Committee.

"If the ships in the Pacific Fleet are not ready to safely sail, they don't get underway," he said.

The remarks indicated a change in the Navy's culture, which had led to multiple catastrophic incidents in 2017, in which two separate collisions involving warships in the Seventh Fleet took place.

Probes into the incidents found that inadequate training and insufficient personnel contributed to the incidents. Multiple Navy officials were disciplined in the wake of the incidents.

Speaking at the same hearing, head of Fleet Forces Command Admiral Christopher Grady said the Navy is working to fill the 6,200 vacant positions, noting that it could take years to fill those vacancies and properly train the officers and sailors.

The U.S. military is experiencing an across-the-service draft drought caused by multiple factors, including a low employment rate and low enthusiasm among young people to serve in the military. Enditem

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