On Thursday, the Coast Guard Sector Anchorage received a call at 10:53 am from the fishing vessel Flying Ocean that a crewmember had fallen overboard during fishing operations and was missing.

The Flying Ocean reported the position of the lost crewmember as approximately 30 miles northwest of Sitkinak Island.

The Coast Guard cutter Hickory, two MH-60 Jayhawk helicopters and a HC-130 Hurcules were dispatched to the area. The search assets covered approximately 550 square miles in the search for the crewman.

The search continued throughout the day without success. The search was ultimately called off at 9:37 pm Thursday.

“Suspending a search and rescue case is one of the hardest decisions that we have to make,” said Michael McNeil, a command duty officer at Coast Guard Sector Anchorage. “Our thoughts and prayers are with the missing fisherman’s family and the crew of the fishing vessel.”

During the search operation, a Jayhawk helicopter suffered an in-flight emergency and the crew had to make an emergency landing of their aircraft on the beach at Low Cape on the southwest side of Kodiak Island.

The crew of the cutter Hickory launched a small boat that picked up the crew of the disabled helicopter. The crew spent the evening on the cutter.

“The safety of our aircrews is our primary concern and they are trained to respond in the event of an aircraft emergency,” said Capt. Melissa Rivera, commander Coast Guard Air Station Kodiak. “The crew was able to put their training to use and safely land the aircraft without injuries.”

The Coast Guard will investigate the cause of the mechanical failure today and develop a recovery plan for the aircraft once the investigation into the incident is concluded.