Marines refuel a CH-53E Super Stallion helicopter with the Marine Heavy Helicopter Squadron 361, Marine Aircraft Group 16, 3rd Marine Aircraft Wing at Inyokern Airfield, Calif., Dec. 2, 2023. (Jennifer Sanchez/U.S. Marine Corps)
WASHINGTON — A missing military helicopter that had five Marines onboard has been found by search and rescue crews in a mountainous area outside San Diego, the Marine Corps said Wednesday.
The helicopter was found at about 9 a.m. local time in Pine Valley, Calif., according to the 3rd Marine Aircraft Wing.
The Marines on the helicopter were assigned to the Marine Heavy Helicopter Squadron 361, Marine Aircraft Group 16 of the 3rd Marine Aircraft Wing. They were flying in a CH-53E Super Stallion helicopter and traveling Tuesday from Creech Air Force Base in Nevada to Marine Corps Air Station Miramar in California when the aircraft was reported overdue, the service had said.
No further information was provided Wednesday about the condition of the helicopter or the five Marines onboard.
The California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection tweeted Wednesday that multiple agencies have been requested to assist in the rescue due to heavy snow. Waves of heavy downpours hit the area throughout the night from a historic storm that has drenched California this week.
A May 2020 photo of the gate at Marine Corps Air Station Miramar in San Diego. (Julian Elliott-Drouin/U.S. Marine Corps)
The 3rd Marine Aircraft Wing, which is headquartered at the Miramar base, has been coordinating search and rescue efforts with the San Diego County Sheriff’s Department and the Civil Air Patrol.
The National Weather Service in San Diego is expecting weather conditions Wednesday to include 6 to 10 inches of snow in the mountains above 5,000 feet and gusty winds.
The sheriff’s department has said it was notified at about 1 a.m. that the helicopter was overdue for arrival at the Miramar base and was last seen in the area of Pine Valley, a mountainous region about 35 miles east of downtown San Diego.
The Marine Corps air station is located about 12 miles north of downtown San Diego.
The CH-53E Super Stallion is the largest and heaviest helicopter in the military. It can move troops and equipment over rugged terrain in bad weather, including at night, according to the Marine Corps website. It is also nicknamed the “hurricane maker” because of the amount of downwash generated from its three engines.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
