A top U.S. Navy admiral on Monday called for a swift and thorough investigation into Monday's collision of the USS John S. McCain into an oil tanker near Singapore-- marking the second deadly mishap that occurred in the Pacific in the past three months. 
 
 Adm. John Richardson ordered an operational pause in all the fleets around the world while the Navy works to determine the factors behind the collision. Richardson tweeted that the Navy will conduct a wide investigation, including a review into the possibility of "cyber intrusion or sabotage." 
 
 Adm. Phil Davidson, the head of the Navy's Fleet Forces, will lead the investigation. 
 
 Richardson made clear that there is no evidence of a hacking at this point, but some cyber experts have raised to possiblity given the location of the warships. 
 
 Jeff Stutzman, an ex-information warfare specialist in the Navy who works at a cyber threat intelligence company, told McClatchy that “there’s something more than just human error going on." 
 
 "When you are going through the Strait of Malacca, you can't tell me that a Navy destroyer doesn't have a full navigation team going with full lookouts on every wing and extra people on radar," he said. 
 
 Richardson called for a review of the 7th Fleet’s maintenance, personnel and equipment in the region. He called on a new focus on surface warfare training, which includes tactical and navigational proficiency. 
 
 The USS John S. McCain suffered “significant damage” to its hull after a collision with an oil tanker on Monday near Singapore. 
 
 The 7th Fleet said in a statement that damage to the guided missile destroyer's hull flooded nearby compartments including crew berths, machinery and communications rooms. 
 
 Ten sailors are missing and four were hospitalized in Singapore with injuries after being evacuated by helicopter. A multinational search and rescue effort involving Singapore, Malaysia, Indonesia and the U.S. is underway. 
 
 On June 17, the USS Fitzgerald was badly damaged in the collision off the coast of Japan. The waters off Japan are considered congested and considered to be challenging to navigate. 
 
 The seas were relatively calm, and visibility was unrestricted. The bow of the container ship, the Philippine-flagged ACX Crystal, slammed into the Fitzgerald's right side above the waterline, quickly flooding several areas inside the ship, including a berthing, or sleeping, area. 
 
 Seven sailors drowned. 
 
 The New York Times reported that there were radar officers working on the bridge and combat information center below and “should have spotted the freighter’s image on their screens.” One sailor wrote the paper: “All I can say is, somebody wasn’t paying attention.” 
 
 The top three leaders aboard the USS Fitzgerald were removed from duty. 
 
 Aside from the USS McCain and USS Fitgerald incidents, the Navy cruiser USS Antietam ran aground dumping more than 1,000 gallons of oil in Tokyo Bay in February. In May, another cruiser, USS Lake Champlain, hit a South Korean fishing vessel. 
 
 Itay Glick, the founder of a cyber security firm called Votiro, told News.com.au that his initial reaction to news of the USS McCain collision was that it may have been hacked. Glick worked in the cyber-warfare unit of the Israeli intelligence agency and pointed to the possibility of involvement from Russia and China. 
 
 “I don’t believe in coincidence,” Glick said. “Both USS McCain and USS Fitzgerald were part of the 7th Fleet, there is a relationship between these two events and there may be a connection.” 
 
 The Associated Press contributed to this report 
 
 Edmund DeMarche is a news editor for FoxNews.com. Follow him on Twitter @EDeMarche. ||||| SINGAPORE: The US destroyer John S McCain collided with a tanker early on Monday (Aug 21) as the warship prepared to make a routine port call in Singapore, leaving a gaping hole in its hull and 10 sailors missing. 
 
 It was the second recent accident involving an American warship after a collision off Japan in June, raising questions about the US Pacific fleet and whether it is taking on too much as it tackles multiple challenges. 
 
 Here are some questions and answers about collision avoidance procedures and what may have caused the latest accident: 
 
 WHAT IS THE PROCEDURE FOR SHIPS PASSING? 
 
 
 
 Commercial vessels use standard marine radar and must also have an Automatic Identification System (AIS), which connects to satellites for vessel tracking and displays the location of other ships. 
 
 However navy vessels often fail to turn on these AIS systems, which can create problems for commercial shipping when their military counterparts use busy waterways, according to Claudia Norrgren, an associate director of VesselsValue which provides data about shipping. 
 
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 WHAT MIGHT HAVE HAPPENED THIS TIME? 
 
 
 
 Analysts say an investigation must be carried out before firm conclusions can be drawn but some suggested that the US Navy ship may not have stuck to the rules for ships in the Strait of Singapore. 
 
 Ridzwan Rahmat, a naval expert from Jane's by IHS Markit, said the accident happened on the eastern approach to the busy strait, in an area governed by a system that separates shipping into two lanes. 
 
 Initial indications suggest the tanker, the Alnic MC, was following the rules but the USS John S McCain may not have been in a proper position as it entered the waterway, he said. 
 
 He said it might be a sign of crew fatigue among the US Navy in the Pacific and there could be "a rethink on the kind of operations that the US Navy will be conducting moving forward, especially the freedom of navigation operations in the South China Sea". 
 
 This photo released by the Royal Malaysian Navy shows the oil and chemical tanker Alnic MC after a collision with the US destroyer John S McCain. (Photo: Royal Malaysian Navy via AP) 
 
 The McCain earlier this month had carried out such a operation, which is designed to assert international navigational rights in the face of Chinese claims to most of the Sea. 
 
 AREN'T THERE ANY SAFEGUARDS? 
 
 
 
 There are well-established rules for vessels navigating waterways around Singapore, such as a mandatory reporting system for vessels over a certain size, said Jayendu Krishna, director of Drewry Maritime Advisors. 
 
 All ships are equipped with navigational safety equipment, and naval ships are likely to have even better and more high-tech systems, he added. 
 
 HOW OFTEN DOES THIS KIND OF THING HAPPEN? 
 
 
 
 The growth of maritime traffic in the busy trade routes around Singapore, particularly the Strait of Malacca and adjacent Strait of Singapore, has increased the risk of accidents and minor collisions are frequent, analysts say. 
 
 There are currently 268 cargo vessels in the Singapore Strait of the same type and size of the Alnic MC, said Norrgren of VesselsValue. 
 
 But such a major collision is unusual, she added.
– At least 10 US sailors are missing after the USS John S. McCain collided with a tanker early Monday east of Singapore and the Strait of Malacca in the second collision involving a ship from the Navy's 7th Fleet in the Pacific in two months. The Navy says five other sailors were hurt in the collision involving the guided-missile destroyer, the AP reports. The McCain—named after Sen. John McCain's grandfather—was heading to Singapore for a routine port visit, the Navy says. It spent last week conducting a sensitive freedom of navigation operation by sailing near one of China's man-made islands in the South China Sea. It wasn't immediately clear if the oil and chemical tanker Alnic MC sustained damage or casualties. The McCain was damaged on its port side aft, or left rear, from the accident that happened at 5:24am, the Navy's 7th Fleet said, but it was heading to port under its own power. Malaysia's navy chief says two ships as well as aircraft from its navy and air force have been deployed to help look for the missing US sailors. Sen. McCain tweeted: "Cindy & I are keeping America's sailors aboard the USS John S McCain in our prayers tonight - appreciate the work of search & rescue crews." In June, seven sailors were killed when the USS Fitzgerald collided with a merchant vessel off the coast of Japan.