• Four out
of five crew members rescued, navy said
• Incident
occurred 18 miles from naval base in Norfolk (US), VA
An MH-53 Sea Dragon helicopter. Photograph: US navy |
A US navy
helicopter with five crew members on board crashed in the Atlantic off the
coast of Virginia on Wednesday. The navy said four of the crew had been
rescued, and efforts were under way to pick up the fifth.
The model
involved was a Sikorsky MH-53E Sea Dragon, one of the largest and heaviest
helicopters in the US military, used in mine-hunting missions. The navy
initially misidentified the helicopter a CH-53E Super Stallion, but
subsequently released a correction.
The US navy
has a base in Norfolk, Virginia, about 18 miles from the crash scene. The
incident came a day after four crew members died when a US air force helicopter went down near a town on the coast of Norfolk, in the east of England. Local
police said that incident occurred during a training exercise involving two US
military aircraft, both HH-60 Pave Hawk helicopters.
Navy petty
officer David Weydert told the Associated Press that the helicopter involved in
Wednesday’s crash in Virginia was reported down about 11am ET.
A Pentagon
spokesperson said: "Five personnel were aboard and search and rescue
efforts are ongoing. The helicopter is assigned to helicopter mine
countermeasures squadron 14 from naval station Norfolk. It was conducting
routine operations off the coast when the crash happened."
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