Iranian Lies Nailed Again: CENTCOM Debunks US Navy Helicopter Crash Report

WASHINGTON, Oct 6: US Central Command (CENTCOM) on Tuesday denied reports circulating in Iranian state media that a US Navy MH-60R helicopter had crashed in the Red Sea after declaring an emergency.

CENTCOM said the reports were false and confirmed that all US military aircraft and personnel across the Middle East were safe and accounted for.

The denial came after reports emerged that an MH-60R Seahawk helicopter had declared an emergency while flying over the Red Sea near Saudi Arabia on Monday. Publicly available flight-tracking data showed the aircraft subsequently disappeared from the tracking service, prompting speculation about a possible crash.

Iranian media subsequently reported that the helicopter had likely crashed, but there had been no official confirmation of a crash before CENTCOM issued its denial.

CENTCOM's statement sought to dispel the reports, saying claims that a US Navy helicopter had been downed in the Red Sea were “not true.”