Illustrative image. (U.S. Central Command)
The United States Naval Forces Central Command announced that a MH-60S Sea Hawk helicopter assigned to USS George H.W. Bush aircraft carrier conducted an emergency water landing in the Arabian Sea on July 1.
In a statement posted to X, the command said that there is no indication the emergency water landing was caused by “hostile action.”
“Three of the helicopter’s four crew members have been recovered and are in stable condition aboard George H. W. Bush. U.S. Navy assets in the region are currently searching for other aircrewman still missing,” it added, noting the “cause of incident is under investigation.”
The MH-60S, a variant of the naval SH-60, is typically deployed aboard aircraft carriers, amphibious assault ships, Maritime Sealift Command ships, and fast combat support ships.
The helicopter’s missions include vertical replenishment, medical evacuation, combat search and rescue, anti-surface warfare, maritime interdiction, close air support, intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance, and special warfare support. A single helicopter of this type could cost upwards of $30 million.
This is the second American military helicopter to go down close to the Strait of Hormuz in under a month. On June 8, an AH-64 Apache attack helicopter went down near the coast of Oman. Both crewmen were rescued by a drone of the U.S. Navy in a first.
Interestingly, when the Apache went down, the U.S. military, just likely now, didn’t provide any clear reason. Later, however, it acknowledged that the helicopter was hit by an Iranian drone. The incident led to a series of clashes with the Islamic Republic.
The latest incident also follows a clash between the U.S. and Iran over the Strait of Hormuz. The clash broke out after Oman announced an alternative route through the waterway along its shoreline in cooperation with the International Maritime Organization.
Two ships were hit along the route, with the U.S. Central Command holding Iran responsible and launching two waves of strikes against the Islamic Republic. The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps responded both times, hitting American bases in Kuwait and Bahrain.
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