Two US Army crew members were rescued after their AH-64 Apache attack helicopter went down off the coast of Oman on June 8, 2026, US Central Command (CENTCOM) said. The aircraft was lost while patrolling regional waters, and both soldiers were recovered within roughly two hours.
CENTCOM said the crew was rescued at 19:33 Eastern Time on June 8, 2026, roughly two hours after the helicopter went down while patrolling regional waters.
A US Navy surface drone located the crew in the water and carried out the rescue, bringing them to land.
The recovery was led by US Naval Forces Central Command and the US Army’s 82nd Airborne Division, with support from US Air Force and US Navy units, including the US 5th Fleet’s Task Force 59, the command’s Bahrain-based maritime task force built around uncrewed systems.
First Apache lost during Operation Epic Fury
The Apache went down as US forces continue Operation Epic Fury, the campaign tied to the conflict with Iran that began on February 28, 2026. US Army rotary-wing assets have been tasked with maritime interdiction across the Gulf of Oman and the approaches to the Strait of Hormuz.
The loss adds to a series of incidents involving US aircraft recorded since the operation began. On March 2, 2026, three US Air Force F-15E Strike Eagle jets went down over Kuwait in an apparent friendly fire incident, and on March 12, 2026, a US Air Force KC-135 Stratotanker was lost over western Iraq in what CENTCOM described as a non-combat event.
