Search and rescue operations continued Wednesday for five crew members aboard a MH-60S Sea Hawk helicopter that crashed into the Pacific Ocean Tuesday afternoon off the coast of San Diego.
One sailor was rescued late Tuesday and is in stable condition, U.S. 3rd Fleet said in a statement Wednesday morning.
The helicopter, assigned to Helicopter Sea Combat Squadron 8 and the aircraft carrier Abraham Lincoln, was “operating on deck before crashing into the sea,” the command said.
Command officials told Navy Times that as of late Wednesday morning local time they could not clarify whether the helicopter was taking off or landing at the time of the mishap.
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“We will provide updates to our initial press release as we receive more information,” they said in an email.
Five sailors who were onboard Abraham Lincoln at the time of the crash also suffered injuries but are in stable condition, according to the command.
Two of those five were transported off the ship, while three had injuries that didn’t require evacuation, 3rd Fleet said.
An investigation into the mishap is underway.
Correction: an earlier version of this story incorrectly stated the name of the helicopter. It is a Sea Hawk.
Geoff is the managing editor of Military Times, but he still loves writing stories. He covered Iraq and Afghanistan extensively and was a reporter at the Chicago Tribune. He welcomes any and all kinds of tips at geoffz@militarytimes.com.
