NAVY CALLS OFF SEARCH FOR SAILOR MISSING FROM AIRCRAFT CARRIER

Ethan Goolsby, 20, went overboard from Theodore Roosevelt

The U.S. Navy has called off the search for a sailor who apparently went overboard the aircraft carrier Theodore Roosevelt Thursday morning in waters off the coast of Southern California.

The sailor went missing three days after the aircraft carrier set sail from San Diego.

The parents of the missing sailor identified him as 20-year-old Aviation Ordnanceman Airman Apprentice Ethan Goolsby of San Antonio, Texas, according to The Navy Times.

The search ended at sunset Saturday after the Theodore Roosevelt, Bunker Hill, Russell, Howard, Charleston and Portland, along with the U.S. Coast Guard and other aircraft, searched more than 607 square nautical miles for more than 55 hours.

“The loss of our Sailor is felt deeply by all on board,” said Capt. Eric Anduze, commanding officer of the Theodore Roosevelt, in a news release. “The entire Theodore Roosevelt team sends our deepest condolences to the family of our missing shipmate.”

Rear Adm. Doug Verissimo, commander of Carrier Strike Group Nine, also thanked the sailors and Coast Guard crews who were involved in the search.

Crews aboard the San Diego-based aircraft carrier began search-andrescue efforts Thursday morning after a lookout spotted what appeared to be a person in the water, according to a news release from the U.S. 3rd Fleet. The initial search involved three helicopters and a small inflatable watercraft.

During a ship-wide head count, the carrier crew learned one sailor was unaccounted for, according to Navy officials. Cmdr. Sean Robertson, a spokesman for the San Diegobased 3rd Fleet, said a public announcement of the incident was delayed until the Navy could notify the sailor’s family.

The Roosevelt left San Diego on Monday for a scheduled deployment just five months after returning in July following an ill-fated deployment that saw a quarter of its crew infected with the novel coronavirus.

The incident remains under investigation.

Staff writers Andrew Dyer and Alex Riggins contributed to this report.