USS Dwight D. Eisenhower ordered back to base after potentially deadly ‘mishap’ that left multiple sailors and airmen hospitalized

The US Navy aircraft carrier USS Dwight D. Eisenhower has been ordered to return to base in the wake of a potentially deadly incident on board that left multiple aviators and sailors hospitalized. Precise details on what occurred have not been made public. What we do know is that on Sept. 28, something that the Navy has described as a “mishap” took place.

USNI News has more details, confirming that an E/A-18G Growler was involved in an “arresting gear failure.” That resulted in two airmen ejecting from the craft and landing in the ocean, with eight sailors on board transported to various hospitals.

As per this explanation on Scribd, an “arresting gear failure” occurs when the mechanical system responsible for stopping a landing aircraft malfunctions, fails to engage properly, or breaks under the extreme physical stress of a landing. We don’t know precisely what kind of failure this was, though the most common kind is the high-tensile steel wire used to slow down the plane snapping and whipping across the deck at high speed.

Is the Eisenhower safe?

As the official Navy explanation said: “At approximately 6:18 p.m. EDT on Sept. 28, a mishap involving an E/A-18G Growler, attached to the ‘Zappers’ of Electronic Attack Squadron (VAQ) 130, occurred during aircraft recovery operations aboard the Nimitz-class aircraft carrier USS Dwight D. Eisenhower off the coast of Virginia.”

They continued: “Two naval aviators assigned to Carrier Air Wing (CVW) 3 subsequently ejected from their aircraft following an arresting gear failure and were promptly recovered by search-and-rescue personnel assigned to Helicopter Sea Combat Squadron (HSC) 7. Both aviators were safely returned to the ship.”

One of the injured sailors was flown to a Norfolk area hospital for treatment of his injuries, with the aviators and other sailors were flown to Naval Medical Center Portsmouth for evaluation and treatment.

Now Stars and Stripes is reporting that the Eisenhower is on its way to Naval Station Norfolk “for an assessment of its aircraft systems and equipment”. Command justified the move in a Facebook post, saying, “The decision reflects the Navy’s deliberate approach to flight safety and readiness. While the cause of the mishap remains under investigation, Navy technical experts will conduct a thorough assessment of the affected systems and complete any necessary maintenance before flight operations resume.”

Comments on the post seemed largely skeptical that the ship is safe. In the comments, one Kayla S. Ljungfest claims she has been previously deployed on the Eisenhower and that her husband is currently deployed on it. She alleges: “The ship has way more issues than just arresting gears they just won’t tell the public because it makes them look bad but anyone who has deployed on that ship in the passed[sic] six years or have been stationed there will tell you how bad it is.”