OFF THE VIRGINIA COAST - Two U.S. Navy aviators ejected from an EA-18G Growler after an arresting-gear failure during an attempted landing aboard the aircraft carrier USS Dwight D. Eisenhower, with six additional sailors injured in the mishap, according to an updated Navy account.
The incident occurred at approximately 6:18 p.m. EDT Monday, Sept. 28, while the Nimitz-class carrier was conducting aircraft recovery operations off the coast of Virginia.
The two aviators were assigned to the 'Zappers' of Electronic Attack Squadron 130, or VAQ-130, which operates the EA-18G Growler and is assigned to Carrier Air Wing 3.
The Navy said the Growler experienced an arresting-gear failure while attempting to land.
Both aviators ejected and were promptly recovered by search-and-rescue personnel from Helicopter Sea Combat Squadron 7.
They were safely returned to the Eisenhower.
Six additional sailors were also injured in the incident, according to the Navy's updated information reported Tuesday.
All eight personnel, including the two aviators, were evaluated by medical personnel aboard the carrier.
Four sent for additional evaluation
The two aviators and two sailors who were injured on the flight deck were flown to Naval Medical Center Portsmouth for additional evaluation, according to the Navy.
Another sailor was transported to a hospital in the Norfolk area with injuries described as non-life-threatening.
The Navy has not publicly released the identities of the injured personnel.
It has also not publicly detailed the nature of most of the injuries.
The condition of the remaining sailors was not immediately disclosed beyond the Navy's statement that they were evaluated by medical personnel.
Arresting gear failed during landing
Aircraft carriers use arresting gear to rapidly stop fixed-wing aircraft landing on the relatively short flight deck.
During a normal arrested landing, the aircraft's tailhook catches one of the thick steel arresting wires stretched across the deck.
The arresting system absorbs the aircraft's energy and rapidly slows the jet to a stop.
The Navy says Nimitz-class carriers such as the Eisenhower use the Mk-7 arresting-gear system.
A failure during that process can create an immediate emergency for both the aircraft crew and sailors working nearby on the flight deck.
The Navy has not yet publicly provided a detailed description of which arresting-gear component failed Monday or why it malfunctioned.
An investigation into the cause is underway.
What happened to the Growler remains unclear
The Navy identified the aircraft Tuesday as an EA-18G Growler but had not publicly detailed the aircraft's final condition as of the latest update.
It was not immediately clear whether the Growler remained aboard the carrier, went into the water or sustained other damage after the aviators ejected.
The Navy also has not publicly reported damage to the Eisenhower itself.
The EA-18G is the Navy's specialized electronic-attack aircraft and is based on the F/A-18F Super Hornet airframe.
Unlike a single-seat fighter, the Growler carries two aviators and is designed to conduct electronic warfare missions including jamming and suppression of enemy air defenses.
The Navy describes the EA-18G as the U.S. military's only dedicated electronic-attack aircraft.
VAQ-130 and Carrier Air Wing 3
The aircraft involved was assigned to VAQ-130, known as the Zappers.
The squadron is based at Naval Air Station Whidbey Island in Washington state and operates as the electronic-attack component of Carrier Air Wing 3.
Carrier Air Wing 3 has long operated with the Eisenhower and includes fighter, electronic-attack, airborne command-and-control and helicopter squadrons.
The Navy said the rapid recovery of the two aviators reflected emergency training regularly conducted by carrier flight-deck and aviation crews.
Search-and-rescue personnel from Helicopter Sea Combat Squadron 7 responded to recover the aviators following the ejection.
Eisenhower recently returned from major maintenance
The mishap occurred while the USS Dwight D. Eisenhower was continuing training and evaluation following a lengthy maintenance period.
The carrier recently completed extensive repairs, maintenance and modernization work in the Norfolk area.
The ship conducted sea trials in April and returned to the Navy's basic training phase afterward.
According to defense reporting, the Eisenhower completed an approximately 16-month Planned Incremental Availability earlier this year.
The carrier had recently been conducting qualifications and other training operations in preparation for a future deployment.
The ship departed Naval Station Norfolk Monday afternoon before the evening mishap.
The Navy has not indicated that Monday's arresting-gear failure was connected to the carrier's recent maintenance period.
Any connection between the repair work and the incident would be speculative unless established by investigators.
Eisenhower experienced another arresting-gear accident in 2016
Monday's incident is not the first arresting-gear failure aboard the Eisenhower.
On March 18, 2016, an arresting-gear cable parted aboard the same carrier during the landing of an E-2C Hawkeye aircraft.
Eight sailors working on the flight deck were injured in that incident.
The Navy said all eight suffered non-life-threatening injuries.
The Hawkeye involved in the 2016 incident was able to regain flight and later landed safely ashore.
That earlier accident occurred while the carrier was conducting qualifications and training off the Virginia coast.
There is no evidence that the 2016 incident is technically connected to Monday's failure.
The two events occurred more than a decade apart and are being treated as separate incidents.
Recent Navy aviation mishaps
The Eisenhower accident comes amid heightened attention on U.S. military aviation safety following several high-profile mishaps in recent years.
In 2024, two members of another EA-18G Growler crew were killed when their aircraft crashed east of Mount Rainier in Washington during a training flight.
The Navy has also experienced several carrier aviation accidents involving F/A-18 aircraft, including aircraft lost from the USS Harry S. Truman during its 2024 and 2025 operations.
One Truman fighter went overboard during a landing-related incident involving arresting equipment.
Each mishap is investigated separately, and there is currently no evidence establishing a common cause between those events and Monday's Eisenhower accident.
Carrier landings remain among the most demanding operations in military aviation because aircraft must land on a moving flight deck within a short distance while crews work nearby.
Investigation underway
The Navy is now investigating why the Eisenhower's arresting gear failed and the sequence of events that caused the Growler crew to eject.
Investigators are expected to examine the arresting system, the aircraft, maintenance records, flight-deck procedures and other technical evidence.
The Navy has not announced a timetable for completing that investigation.
It also has not said whether flight operations aboard the Eisenhower have resumed or whether the arresting system involved has been returned to service.
The latest Navy update confirms that both aviators survived the ejection and that the sailor transported to a Norfolk-area hospital had injuries that were not considered life-threatening.
Further information is expected as the Navy determines exactly how the arresting-gear failure occurred and assesses the condition of the aircraft and carrier systems.