US Navy chopper goes down in Arabian Sea, one service member goes missing

A US Navy helicopter went down in the Arabian Sea, prompting a search for a missing service member, while three others were left injured.

Military Central Command authorities have said that the MH-60S Sea Hawk chopper, assigned to the USS George H W Bush Nimitz-class aircraft carrier, made an "emergency landing" on Wednesday.

"There is no indication the emergency was caused by hostile action," the US Naval Forces Central Command said.

It added, "Three of the helicopter's four crew members have been recovered and are in stable condition aboard George H W Bush."

The USS George HW Bush is one of two US aircraft carriers still operating in West Asia, according to US Central Command on June 24.

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Helicopter water landings are inherently risky, even for seasoned pilots, as the top-heavy design of many helicopters makes them prone to rolling over and inverting upon contact with the water.

US forces across the region also remain on heightened alert amid intermittent flare-ups in violence during the ceasefire between the United States and Iran.

Previous incidents

This is not the first time an American chopper has gone down in the region. US President Donald Trump confirmed last month that a US Army AH-64 Apache attack helicopter also went down near the Strait of Hormuz.

Following the crash, the US Navy deployed a drone boat as part of a maritime search-and-rescue operation to recover the pilots, who remained in the water near the crash site for as long as two hours.

In April, US forces carried out another high-risk rescue mission, recovering two aviators who ejected from their F-15E Strike Eagle after the fighter jet was brought down by Iranian fire.