Military personnel continued searching Friday for five air-crew members who went missing this week when a U.S. Navy helicopter crashed into the sea off the coast of San Diego.
One sailor aboard the MH-60S Seahawk was pulled from the ocean after the aircraft went down roughly 60 nautical miles from shore about 4:30 p.m. Tuesday while its six-member crew was engaging in routine flight operations off the deck of the USS Abraham Lincoln, according to Navy public affairs.
The rescued sailor and two others who were hurt in the accident while aboard the San Diego-based aircraft carrier were taken ashore for medical care in stable condition. Another three personnel on the ship suffered minor injuries and remained aboard, officials said.
A military investigation is underway into what caused the crash of the aircraft, which was assigned to Helicopter Sea Combat Squadron 8 at Naval Air Station North Island. Navy officials said only that it “was operating on deck before crashing into the sea.”