Last modified Wed., May 16, 2007 - 05:16 PM
Originally created Thursday, May 17, 2007

HS-7 loses five in Nevada crash

By Staff

Cmdr. Michael Sheahan

Five crewmembers from HS-7 died at 9:25 p.m. (Pacific Daylight Time) May 7, when their SH-60F helicopter crashed approximately 10 miles west of Austin, Nev.

The helicopter was conducting a routine training mission from NAS Fallon, Nev. as part of deployment preparation for their next cruise on board the USS Harry S. Truman (CVN 75) this fall.

Military aircraft initially located the crash site at 9:40 p.m. that night. A Navy UH-1N search and rescue helicopter dispatched from NAS Fallon, arrived at the scene at approximately 10:15 p.m. The cause of the accident is under investigation.

The crewmembers lost in the crash were: HS-7 Commanding Officer Cmdr. Michael Sheahan, 40, of Augusta, Ga., Lt. Richard Andersen, 27, of Virginia Beach, Va., AW1(AW/NAC) William Weatherford, 30, of Wichita, Kan., AW2 Andrew Bibbo, 22, of Clinton, Mass. And AW2 Jared Rossetto, 24, of Corralitos, Calif.

Lt. Richard Andersen

Sheahan, the squadron's commanding officer took over command in 2006 after a tour at the Joint Chiefs of Staff in Washington, D.C. where he served as the Joint Naval Operations operational officer for the Plans and Joint Force Development Directorate (J7). He had accumulated more than 2,800 flight hours in the SH-3H and H-60B/F/H helicopters during his 17-year naval career.

HS-7 was originally established in April 1956 at NAS Norfolk, Va. for the mission of harbor defense. After several changes in homeports, it arrived at NAS Jacksonville in 1973 after transitioning to the SH-3H Sea King helicopter. Originally nicknamed, "The Shamrocks", HS-7 changed its name to the "Dusty Dogs" in 2004. The squadron, which now flies the SH-60F and HH-60H helicopters, returned from its most recent deployment on board USS Harry S. Truman (CVN 75) in April 2005. The squadron supported the Hurricane Katrina relief efforts in August 2005 and joined Carrier Air Wing Seventeen on board USS George Washington (CVN 73) in April 2006 for the Partnership of the Americas deployment, which im-proved maritime security and fostered relations with nations in the Caribbean and South America.

AW1(AW/NAC) William Weatherford

NAS Fallon serves as the Navy's premier tactical air warfare training center. It is the only facility in existence where an entire carrier air wing can conduct comprehensive training while integrating every element of the wing into realistic battle scenarios.

A memorial service for the crew is scheduled for May 31 at Hangar 116.

AW2 Andrew Bibbo

AW2 Jared Rossetto