Five US navy sailors declared dead after helicopter crash off California coast
Aircraft operating on deck of carrier USS Abraham Lincoln when it crashed into sea
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Your support makes all the difference.Five US Navy sailors were declared dead after they disappeared following a helicopter crash off the California coast, according to a navy news release on Saturday.
The US 3rd Fleet has since shifted its operations from search and rescue efforts to recovery operations.
Assigned to Helicopter Sea Combat Squadron 8, the MH-60S Sea Hawk helicopter was conducting routine flight operations from the aircraft carrier USS Abraham Lincoln when it crashed into the sea.
A US Pacific Fleet statement says the aircraft was operating on the deck of the carrier before crashing into the sea.
The incident happened approximately 60 nautical miles off the coast of San Diego at 4.30pm local time on Tuesday 31 August.
One sailor was rescued shortly after the helicopter crashed on Tuesday afternoon and was in stable condition at a San Diego hospital, according to a statement from the fleet.
Five sailors on the carrier, where the helicopter was operating before the crash, were also injured. Two of them were treated at a San Diego hospital, while three were treated on-site for minor injuries.
As a matter of respect for the families and in accordance with navy policy, the identities of the deceased sailors are withheld until 24 hours after their next of kin have been notified.
The move to recovery operations comes after more than 72 hours of coordinated efforts to rescue any survivors that included 34 search and rescue flights, over 170 hours of flight time, with five search helicopters, and constant surface vessel search, according to a fleet statement.
Units involved in the effort included assets from Coast Guard District 11, USS Abraham Lincoln, USS Cincinnati, and helicopter squadrons from the US Pacific Fleet Helicopter Sea Combat Wing and Helicopter Maritime Strike Wing.
An investigation into the incident is underway.
MH-60S Sea Hawk is typically used for anti-surface warfare, combat support, humanitarian disaster relief, combat search and rescue, and medical evacuation.
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