Summary Between 1969 and 1990, more than 200 servicemen were killed in accidents involving the CH-53A, CH-53D, and CH-53E. The MH-53E Sea Dragon is the U.S. Navy's helicopter with the highest accident rate, with 27 deaths from 1984 to 2008. During that time, its rate of
class A mishaps, meaning serious damage or loss of life, was 5.96 per 100,000 flight hours, more than twice the Navy helicopter average of 2.26. An independent investigation reported that between 1984 and 2019, 132 people died in accidents on the Navy and Marine versions of this helicopter. A 2005 lawsuit alleged that since 1993, at least 16 in-flight fires or thermal incidents involved the number-two engine on Super Stallion helicopters. The suit claimed that proper changes were not made, nor were crews instructed on emergency techniques.
Major accidents • On 1 June 1984, a CH-53E based at Tustin was lifting a truck from the deck of a ship during an exercise when a sling attached to the truck broke. This sent a shock wave into the aircraft and caused major damage. Four crew members died in the accident. • On 19 November 1984, a CH-53E on a routine training mission at Camp Lejeune, NC, was lifting a seven-ton howitzer before it crashed. Six people were killed, and 11 injured. • On 25 August 1985, a CH-53E from New River, North Carolina, was flying a routine supply and passenger run from Tustin to Twentynine Palms during a training operation when it caught fire and crashed in Laguna Hills. One of the three crew members was killed and the aircraft was a total loss. • On 9 May 1986, a CH-53E crashed during training exercises near Twentynine Palms, killing four marines and injuring another. • On 8 January 1987, a USMC CH-53E crashed while practicing night landings for troop deployment at the Salton Sea Test Range. All five crew members were killed. • On 18 July 1988, a Navy MH-53E from HM-15 crashed at sea about 10 miles off the San Francisco coast killing the eight man crew. It was reported to have caught fire and exploded while towing a mine-countermeasures sled. This was the first MH-53E to crash. • On 8 February 1992, a CH-53E Super Stallion crashed at Naval Air Station Cecil Field, Jacksonville, Florida, resulting in the deaths of all four Marines aboard. • On 9 May 1996, a CH-53E crashed at Sikorsky's Stratford plant, killing four employees on board. This led to the Navy grounding all CH-53Es and MH-53Es. • On 20 January 2002, a CH-53E crash in Afghanistan killed two crew members and injured five others. Defense Department officials said the early-morning crash was the result of mechanical problems with the helicopter. • On 2 April 2002, a Navy MH-53E (BuNo 163051) of
HM-14 crashed on the runway at
Bahrain International Airport. All 18 people on board survived with only a few cases of minor injuries. • On 27 June 2002, a Navy MH-53E Sea Dragon of
Helicopter Combat Support Squadron 4 (HC-4) "Black Stallions" crashed in a hard landing at NAS Sigonella, Sicily. No one was injured, but the aircraft was written off. • On 26 January 2005, a CH-53E carrying 30 marines and one navy corpsman
crashed in Al-Anbar province near
Rutbah,
Iraq, killing all 31 on board. A
sandstorm was determined as the cause of the accident. The crash was part of the deadliest day of the Iraq War in terms of US fatalities. • On 16 February 2005, an MH-53E from HC-4, based at Naval Air Station Sigonella, Sicily, crashed on the base, injuring the four crew members. • On 17 February 2006, two CH-53Es carrying a combined U.S. Marine Corps and Air Force crew collided during a training mission over the
Gulf of Aden, resulting in 10 deaths and two injuries. • On 16 January 2008, a Navy MH-53E on a routine training mission crashed about 4 miles south of Corpus Christi, Texas. Three crew members died in the crash, and one crew member was treated at a local hospital. • On 29 June 2012, a Navy MH-53E from HM-14 made an emergency landing 5 miles northeast of Pohang, South Korea, due to an in-flight fire. Though the pilots and aircrew were uninjured, the aircraft was heavily damaged by the fire. • On 19 July 2012, a Navy MH-53E crashed 58 miles south of Muscat, Oman, during a heavy-lift operation, resulting in two deaths. • On 8 January 2014, a US Navy MH-53E Sea Dragon crashed in the Atlantic 18 nautical miles east of
Cape Henry, Virginia, with five crew members on board. Three crew members perished in the mishap. • On 1 September 2014, a USMC CH-53E of the
22nd Marine Expeditionary Unit crashed in the Gulf of Aden while attempting to land on the
USS Mesa Verde following training operations in Djibouti. All 17 marines and 8 sailors on board were rescued. • On 14 January 2016, two USMC CH-53Es on a night training exercise off the coast of Hawaii
collided with each other, resulting in the loss of both aircraft and death of their 12 crew members; each CH-53E was carrying a crew of six. • On 11 October 2017, a USMC CH-53E based at
Marine Corps Air Station Futenma crash-landed in the Takae district of
Higashi village in Okinawa. An engine fire forced a crash-landing 300 m from homes. While nobody was injured, the fire destroyed the helicopter. The US military grounded all CH-53Es in Japan, with the Japanese government calling for an indefinite grounding. The resumption of flights angered some local people and the Japanese government expressed displeasure. • On 3 April 2018, a USMC CH-53E of the
3rd Marine Aircraft Wing crashed near
Plaster City, California, killing four marines. • On 7 February 2024, five U.S. marines were killed after a CH-53E crashed in
San Diego County, California, U.S. ==Specifications (CH-53E)==