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Three crew members were recovered alive after an MH-60S assigned to the USS George H.W. Bush ditched in the Arabian Sea, while search and rescue operations continue for a fourth crew member.

An MH-60S Seahawk helicopter assigned to the USS George H.W. Bush (CVN 77) aircraft carrier conducted an emergency water landing in the Arabian Sea during the early hours of Jul. 1, 2026. According to a statement by U.S. Naval Forces Central Command/U.S. 5th Fleet, the incident occurred at approximately 3:30 a.m. EDT (7:30 UTC).

Three of the helicopter’s four crew members were safely recovered and are in stable condition aboard the USS Bush. The service said in the statement that U.S. Navy assets are conducting search and rescue operations for the remaining missing aircrew member.

On July 1 at 3:30 a.m. ET, the aircrew of an MH-60S Sea Hawk helicopter assigned to USS George H.W. Bush (CVN 77) conducted an emergency water landing in the Arabian Sea. There is no indication the emergency was caused by hostile action. Three of the helicopter’s four crew…

— U.S. Naval Forces Central Command/U.S. 5th Fleet (@US5thFleet) July 1, 2026

At the time of this writing, the search for the missing aircrew member remains ongoing, and the Navy has not released updates.

The cause of the incident is currently under investigation. However, the Navy stated there is “no indication the emergency was caused by hostile action.”

The service has not released additional details regarding the nature of the emergency or the mission being flown at the time of the accident. The aircraft carrier was among the assets enforcing the naval blockade on Iran and, as commercial ship traffic in the Strait of Hormuz is gradually resuming, continues to monitor the area to ensure the safety of the transiting vessels.

USS George H.W. Bush (CVN 77) sails in the Arabian Sea. Two aircraft carriers continue to operate in the Middle East as U.S. forces remain present and vigilant. pic.twitter.com/IhQLCoV1YT

— U.S. Central Command (@CENTCOM) June 23, 2026

The MH-60S Seahawk is the U.S. Navy’s primary combat support helicopter, employed for a wide variety of missions including logistics, search and rescue, medical evacuation, special warfare support, vertical replenishment and maritime security. When assigned to a Carrier Air Wing (CVW), the main roles of the Seahawk are ‘plane guard’ – providing Search and Rescue (SAR) support during aircraft carrier flight operations – and Carrier Strike Group (CSG) logistics.

At the time of the incident the USS George H.W. Bush and its embarked Carrier Air Wing 7 were operating in the U.S. 5th Fleet area of responsibility. CVW-7 is assigned a single MH-60S squadron, the Helicopter Sea Combat Squadron (HSC) 5 “Nightdippers.”