Navy halts search for missing crew members in Red Sea

SAN DIEGO (CNS) – A Navy search of the Red Sea for two helicopter crew
members aboard a San Diego-based MH-60S Nighthawk that crashed Sunday was
suspended Monday.

Navy officials said they concluded “aircrew survivability was extremely
unlikely,” given the time that had passed since the accident off the west
coast of Saudi Arabia.

The chopper, assigned to Helicopter Sea Combat Squadron 6 at Naval Air
Station North Island, crashed while the pilot trying to land on deck of the San
Diego-based guided-missile destroyer USS William P. Lawrence, officials said.
Both deployed with the USS Nimitz Carrier Strike Group in January.

The crash was not related to “any sort of hostile activity,” Navy
officials said.

Three of the helicopter's five crew members were “accounted for and
stable” following the crash, according to the Navy. Searchers combed the area
in boats and aircraft to no avail.

The Nimitz and the William P. Lawrence, along with USS Princeton, USS
Shoup, USS Stockdale and USNS Rainier were involved in the search efforts, as
were Navy and U.S. Air Force aircraft, according to the Navy.

The USS Nimitz Carrier Strike Group was providing aircraft and small
boats for search and rescue assistance, according to the Navy.