U.S. Navy Aircraft Crash in โขSouth China Sea
A U.S.Navy helicopter and fighter jet assigned to the aircraft carrier USS Nimitz crashed inโข the South China Sea onโ Sunday in separate incidents occurring less than an hour apart, officials reported. All personnel involved were rescued and are in stable condition.
Theโข incidents raise questions about operational safetyโ in the contested watersโข of the South China Sea, โขa region of strategic importance and frequent military activity. the Navy has initiated investigations into theโ causes of bothโฃ crashes.
At approximately 2:45 p.m. local time, anโฃ MH-60Rโฃ Sea Hawk helicopter โfrom Helicopterโฃ Maritime Strike โคSquadron 73 (“Battle Cats”) went down during routine operations. The three crew members were rescued by assets from the Nimitz’sโค strike group.
Roughly 30 minutes later, at 3:15 p.m., an F/A-18F Super Hornet fighter jet โfrom โstrike Fighter โSquadron 22โฃ (“Fighting Redcocks”) also crashed while conducting routine operations. Both crew members successfully ejected โคand were subsequently rescued, according to U.S. โฃPacific Fleet.
The causes of both incidents are currently under investigation.
