The U.S. Navy on Monday called off its search for a sailor who disappeared after the helicopter they were aboard made an emergency landing in the Arabian Sea, the service said.
The aircrewman went missing Wednesday after their MH-60S Sea Hawk helicopter, assigned to the USS George H.W. Bush, went down at 3:30 a.m. EDT.
The helicopter contained three other crew members who were successfully rescued.
“The efforts concluded following an extensive search by the U.S. Navy and U.S. Air Force in the U.S. Central Command area of responsibility,” the Navy said.
The service is withholding the name of the service member until at least 24 hours after the aviator’s next-of-kin is notified of their possible death.
The search lasted 102 hours, spanned over 14,000 square miles and encompassed USS George H.W. Bush carrier’s Helicopter Sea Combat Squadron 5, Helicopter Maritime Strike Squadron 46 and the fixed wing aircraft of Carrier Air Wings 7 and 9.
Efforts also included the Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyers USS Ross, USS Donald Cook, USS Higgins, USS Mason and USS John Finn with Helicopter Maritime Strike Squadron 51, two P-8 Poseidon squadrons and several U.S. Air Force aircraft.
The Navy said Wednesday that the incident didn’t appear to be the result of hostile activity.
The circumstances surrounding the emergency landing are under investigation.
Riley Ceder is a reporter at Military Times, where he covers breaking news, criminal justice, investigations, and cyber. He previously worked as an investigative practicum student at The Washington Post, where he contributed to the Abused by the Badge investigation.
