Navy helicopter crashes into sea off San Diego coast

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Navy helicopter crashes into sea off San Diego coast

#1 Post by PHXPhlyer » Wed Sep 01, 2021 3:38 am

Navy helicopter crashes into sea off San Diego coast
The Coast Guard and Navy were conducting search and rescue operations after the MH-60S crashed, but more details about those aboard were not available.


https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/na ... t-n1278196

A Navy helicopter crashed into the sea off the Southern California coast Tuesday, the military said.

The MH-60S helicopter crashed around 60 nautical miles off the coast of San Diego at 4:30 p.m., the Navy said.

The number of people aboard the helicopter was not immediately clear.

The Coast Guard and Navy were conducting search and rescue operations, the U.S. Third Fleet said.

The MH-60S helicopter can have a crew of four, according to the Navy's website, but the military in a statement did not say how many people were on the aircraft.

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Re: Navy helicopter crashes into sea off San Diego coast

#2 Post by Ex-Ascot » Wed Sep 01, 2021 8:04 am

6 on board 5 missing one rescued. Doesn't look good.

https://www.nbcsandiego.com/news/local/ ... t/2707203/
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Re: Navy helicopter crashes into sea off San Diego coast

#3 Post by PHXPhlyer » Sat Sep 04, 2021 8:06 pm

Navy declares five dead after helicopter crash off California coast

https://www.cnn.com/2021/09/04/politics ... index.html

(CNN)Five US Navy sailors were declared dead after they disappeared following a helicopter crash off the California coast, the US 3rd fleet said in a news release on Saturday.

The MH-60S helicopter the sailors were in crashed about 60 miles off the coast of San Diego, California, while conducting routine flight operations on Tuesday. One crew member was rescued.
The Navy on Saturday shifted operations from search and rescue to recovery, following more than 72 hours of coordinated rescue efforts.
The Navy will not release the names of the five sailors declared dead until 24 hours after their next of kin has been notified.
"We are deeply saddened by the loss of five Sailors and those injured following the MH-60S helicopter tragedy off the coast of Southern California," Chief of Naval Operations Adm. Mike Gilday said. "We stand alongside their families, loved ones, and shipmates who grieve."
The Navy said the incident is under investigation.
The helicopter was based on the USS Abraham Lincoln aircraft carrier.
This story has been updated with additional information.

Navy declares 5 missing sailors dead after helicopter crash
Search crews are now shifting towards a recovery operation.

https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/na ... h-n1278517

SAN DIEGO — The U.S. Navy declared five missing sailors dead nearly a week after a helicopter crashed in the Pacific Ocean, shifting the search for them to a recovery operation on Saturday.

The move followed more than 72 hours of coordinated rescue efforts and nearly three dozen search and rescue flights to look for the wreckage, the Navy’s Pacific fleet said in a Saturday statement.

The names of the sailors were being withheld until their next of kin have been notified.

Also injured on Tuesday were five other sailors who were on board the USS Abraham Lincoln aircraft carrier where the MH-60S helicopter was operating on the deck before the crash.

They were in stable conditions as of Saturday, said Lt. Samuel R. Boyle, a spokesman for the Pacific fleet.

An investigation into what caused the crash about 70 miles (112 kilometers) off San Diego is ongoing, but the fact that sailors aboard the carrier were injured raised questions about whether the helicopter or parts of it hit the Lincoln. When helicopters take off and land on the ship, there are ground crews present on the carrier nearby and other people working on deck.

The helicopter crashed during what the Navy described only as routine flight operations.

The MH-60S helicopter typically carries a crew of about four and is used in missions including combat support, humanitarian disaster relief and search and rescue.

The aircraft belongs to the Navy’s Helicopter Sea Combat Squadron 8.

Second news item seems to indicate that the Navy is not telling the whole story.

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Re: Navy helicopter crashes into sea off San Diego coast

#4 Post by PHXPhlyer » Thu May 05, 2022 1:24 am

Mechanical failure behind deadly Navy helicopter crash, military says
The helicopter fell into the sea and sank about 70 miles off San Diego. One crewmember was rescued and five were declared dead after a search.

https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/me ... aboolafeed

A Navy helicopter crash off Southern California that killed five crewmembers last year was caused by mechanical failure, not pilot error, the military announced Tuesday.

A command investigation completed on April 18 found that a damper hose failed on the MH-60S Seahawk during flight, probably because of unsuspected damage that occurred during maintenance, the Navy said.

The hose reduces vibrations from the main rotor and the failure led to severe vibrations that caused the rotor to hit the deck as the aircraft landed on an aircraft carrier on Aug. 31, 2021, off San Diego, the Navy said.

The helicopter fell into the sea and sank about 70 miles off San Diego. One crewmember was rescued and five were declared dead after a search.

Five sailors aboard the USS Abraham Lincoln were injured.

“There is no evidence that weather conditions or pilot error were causal or contributing factors to the mishap,” the command investigation concluded.

The aircraft belonged to the Navy’s Helicopter Sea Combat Squadron 8.

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