A rare double incident strikes the legendary carrier during its final deployment in contested waters.
The USS Nimitz experienced an extraordinarily unusual operational setback on October 26, losing both a helicopter and a fighter jet within a 30-minute span while operating in the South China Sea, the U.S. Navy confirmed.
The first mishap occurred at approximately 2:45 p.m. local time when an MH-60R Seahawk helicopter from the HSM-73 “Battle Cats” squadron crashed into the sea during what was described as a “routine operation.” The anti-submarine warfare helicopter went down in circumstances that remain unexplained, though all three crew members were safely recovered by search and rescue assets from Carrier Strike Group 11.
Less than half an hour later, at 3:15 p.m., an F/A-18F Super Hornet from Strike Fighter Squadron 22 (VFA-22) “Fighting Redcocks” went down in separate incident. Both crew members successfully ejected and were recovered safely. The U.S. Navy has provided no additional details about what caused either aircraft to crash, stating only that “both incidents are currently under investigation.”
The losses occurred while the Nimitz was operating in the South China Sea, approximately 130 nautical miles northeast of Indonesia’s Great Natuna Island. The carrier strike group, which includes destroyers USS Gridley, USS Wayne E. Meyer, and USS Lenah Sutcliffe Higbee, had transited through the Strait of Singapore on October 17 after a three-month deployment to the Middle East.
The timing of the incidents carries particular significance. They occurred while President Donald Trump was attending the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) summit in Malaysia, and in waters where China claims sovereignty over nearly the entire South China Sea—claims contested by the United States and regional nations.
