A US Navy MH-60S Sea Hawk helicopter assigned to the aircraft carrier USS George H.W. Bush made an emergency water landing in the Arabian Sea early on Wednesday, leaving one crew member missing and three others rescued. The incident occurred at approximately 3:30 a.m. Eastern Time (around 11 a.m. local time, according to US military statements), while the helicopter was conducting operations from the carrier, which has been deployed in the region since late April.

US Naval Forces Central Command, also known as the Fifth Fleet, said there was “no indication the emergency was caused by hostile action.” The three recovered crew members were described as in stable condition aboard the George H.W. Bush. The missing aircrewman has not been publicly identified, and the exact location of the ditching within the Arabian Sea was not immediately disclosed. The cause of the incident remains under investigation, the Navy said.

The emergency landing comes amid a fragile ceasefire between the United States and Iran, with American forces in the region on heightened alert. Viewed from Washington, the Navy’s swift clarification that no hostile fire was involved distinguishes this event from a series of recent combat losses. In early June, an AH-64 Apache helicopter was shot down by an Iranian drone near the Strait of Hormuz, prompting what the US described as “self-defence strikes.” As of mid-May, the Pentagon had reported 42 fixed-wing and rotary aircraft lost during Operation Epic Fury, though that figure does not include the Apache. The USS George H.W. Bush is one of two American carriers still operating in the Middle East, and its air wing includes MH-60S squadrons used for logistics, search-and-rescue, and anti-surface warfare.

Search operations for the fourth crew member were continuing with US Navy assets in the area, the Fifth Fleet said. No further details on the circumstances of the water landing have been released, and the investigation is expected to examine mechanical, operational, and environmental factors. The condition of the rescued personnel has not been elaborated beyond “stable.” The incident remains a developing story with the missing aircrewman’s fate unconfirmed.