VIRGINIA BEACH, Va. (AP) - A Navy helicopter based on an aircraft carrier crashed into the Atlantic Tuesday afternoon. All eight people aboard were rescued from a life raft.

The helicopter from the USS Eisenhower crashed about 30 miles off Naval Air Station Oceana, according to Lt. Mark Jones, assistant public affairs officer for Commander Naval Air Force U.S. Atlantic Fleet.

The MH-53E Sea Dragon, primarily used for minesweeping, was part of a helicopter squadron from the Norfolk Naval Station and was doing exercises with the Bataan, an amphibious assault ship.

The eight crew members took refuge on a life raft and were transported by two Navy helicopters to Portsmouth Naval Medical Center. Their conditions are not immediately known.

The Navy plans to investigate the crash, the cause of which was unknown.

MH-53E Sea Dragon

Description: The MH-53E is used primarily for Airborne Mine Countermeasures (AMCM), with a secondary mission of shipboard delivery.

Background: The MH-53E was derived from the CH-53E Super Stallion and is heavier and has a greater fuel capacity than its ancestor. The MH-53s can operate from carriers and other warships. Sea Dragon is capable of carrying up to 55 troops or a 16-ton payload 50 nautical miles or a 10-ton payload 500 nautical miles. The MH-53E is capable of towing a variety of mine-sweeping countermeasures systems, including the Mk 105 minesweeping sled, the AQS-14 side-scan sonar, and the Mk 103 mechanical minesweeping system.

Point of Contact:
Navy:
Commander
Naval Air Systems Command Office of Public Affairs
47122 Liljencrantz Road
Patuxent River, MD 20670-5440
(301)342-7512

General Characteristics

Contractor: Sikorsky Aircraft Division of United Technologies Corp.
Propulsion: Three General Electric T64-GE-416 turboshaft engines (4,380 shaft horsepower each)
Length:

Fuselage: 73 feet 4 inches (22.34 meters); Overall: 99 feet (30.18 meters)
Height: 28 feet 4 inches (8.63 meters)
Weight: 21 tons (max gross) (18.9 metric tons)
Main Rotor Diameter: 72 feet 3 inches (21.7 meters)
Range: 1,120 nautical miles (1,289 statute miles, 1802 km)
Ceiling: 27,900 feet
Speed: 150 knots (172 miles per hour, 241 km per hour)
Crew: Two pilots, one to six aircrewman, depending on mission
Armament: None
Date deployed: 1983; replaced last of CH-53E in 1994.

United States Navy

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