As Chief of BuShips, Brockett played a role in the investigation of the April 1963 sinking of the nuclear-powered submarine USS Thresher (SSN-593). He also participated in discussions with NASA regarding the use of stable ocean platforms in lieu of instrumentation ships for the early United States space program. Brockett and his vice chief, Charles A. Curtze, resigned their posts at BuShips in October 1965 in protest over Secretary of Defense McNamara's increasing centralization of military power in The Pentagon.
