Captain Sandy Yawn Defends Wes Walton's Decision to Make Malia White Lead Deckhand

Wes Walton's decision to make Malia White lead deckhand proved to be a controversial one since the Below Deck Mediterranean crew members are involved in a bit of a romance this season. However, his fearless leader, Captain Sandy Yawn, is backing the bosun up. 

Captain Sandy defended the move on Twitter Wednesday, saying that regardless of Wes' feelings for Malia, she was the right candidate for lead deckhand. "Wes made his decision," the Below Deck Med boss tweeted. "Malia was the right decision, cause of her interest on the bridge. She was always asking me q's about navigation."

Though Malia's fellow deckhands, Bobby Giancola and Max Hagley, thought it wasn't right for Wes to promote the crew member he has feelings for, Captain Sandy said she believes that Wes kept it professional when it came to his decision. "I think Wes made his decision based on work," she tweeted.

However, Captain Sandy also said that she "had no idea" that Wes and Malia had shared a kiss while on anchor watch, which she "was shocked" to see while watching the episode back. If she had known about their romance, Captain Sandy said she would have made Wes and Malia "work different shifts." 

But all in all, Captain Sandy has been incredibly pleased with Wes and Malia's work this season of Below Deck Med. In fact, she named them as two of the crew members she thinks are on their way to becoming captains one day, along with stewardess Bugsy Drake. "Wes, for sure, he’s really great with people," Captain Sandy said during a recent interview with The Daily Dish. "Bobby I didn’t really spend time with. I think he’s more emotional. You can’t be emotional and run a boat with emotional people. There’s a point where you have to say emotions out of it, let me assess the situation, and be fair. You have to be fair. I’m fair. I think Malia would be fair, Wes would be fair."

Find out who in the crew Captain Sandy wants to see step up their game, below.

Captain Sandy Yawn Reveals the Crew Members She Thinks Would Make Great Captains