The US Department of Defense announced Tuesday the death of a sailor who is believed to have gone overboard from the US warship ‘Abraham Lincoln’, while supporting Operation Freedom’s Sentinel.
Aviation Electronics Technician 2nd Class Slayton Saldana, aged 24, had been listed Duty Status Whereabouts Unknown, following a 17 July non-combat, man overboard incident while underway in the Arabian Sea.
Saldana was assigned to Helicopter Sea Combat Squadron (HSC) 5, part of Carrier Air Wing 7, assigned to the Abraham Lincoln Carrier Strike Group.
The search and rescue efforts ended on 19 July, but the incident is still under investigation, the Department of Defense said.
Navy Times reported that Saldana joined the Navy in 2015 and was on his first deployment when he vanished.