Navy declares missing USS Abraham Lincoln sailor dead

Aviation Electronics Technician 2nd Class Slayton Saldana was reported overboard on July 17. Search and rescue efforts ended on July 19.

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A sailor from the aircraft carrier USS Abraham Lincoln has been officially declared dead after he went missing on July 17 and search and rescue efforts failed to find him, a Navy official said.

Aviation Electronics Technician 2nd Class Slayton Saldana was supporting Operation Freedom’s Sentinel in Afghanistan at the time of his death, the official told Task & Purpose on Monday.

Saldana was assigned to Helicopter Sea Combat Squadron 5, with Carrier Air Wing 7. He was initially listed as Duty Status Whereabouts Unknown after being reported overboard in the Arabian Sea.

The search for him ended on July 19.

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