A U.S. Navy helicopter carrying six crew members crashed into the San Diego Bay on Thursday night, according to the agency.
A MH-60R helicopter from Helicopter Maritime Strike Squadron 41 carrying two pilots and four aircrew went down around 6:40 p.m. during day-into-night search and rescue training, according to U.S. Navy Commander Beth Teach.
Due to the nature of the training, which specialized in rescue swimming, a safety boat was nearby and all six crew members survived, thanks also in part to the assistance of Federal Fire, Commander Teach said.
All crew members were promptly moved ashore to undergo medical evaluation and were found without any critical or life-threatening injuries, Teach said on Friday.
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The cause of the crash is being investigated.
The helicopter is still in the water near the Naval Amphibious Base in Coronado, Teach told NBC 7 on Friday.
Divers from Explosive Ordnance Disposal Mobile Unit (EODMU) THREE assessed the crash site on Friday. The initial reports indicate that the body of the aircraft is still intact, the rotor blade created minimal debris and no fuel leaks were observed.
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Out of precaution, the Navy placed a fuel containment boom around the crash site, Teach said.
The Navy is working to determine if they need other equipment or support to remove the aircraft from the bay.
HSM-41 is a Fleet Replacement Squadron (FRS) that trains the Navy's newest Naval Aviators and Naval Aircrewmen to fly and fight the MH-60R Sea Hawk helicopter, which is the Navy's most advanced rotary wing maritime strike platform, according to Commander Teach.
Retired Navy Commander Billy Walsh spoke to NBC 7 on Friday about the crash.
“In 2006, we lost a crew off the coast of San Clemente Island, and that one was a particularly difficult mishap investigation because four members of the crew were lost and the aircraft was at the bottom of the ocean," Walsh said.
“It's a huge, huge relief because you can replace helicopters, but you can't replace the lives that you lost,” Walsh said.
No other details were available.
