Flight operations aboard USS Dwight D. Eisenhower (CVN-69) stopped on Sept. 28, 2026, when an arresting wire failed under a landing EA-18G Growler and the jet went over the edge of the flight deck. Both aviators ejected and were recovered. As of Oct. 3, flight operations were still paused and the Navy said the Nimitz-class carrier was returning to Naval Station Norfolk, Va., so its launch and recovery equipment could be inspected.
The Growler belonged to the “Zappers” of Electronic Attack Squadron (VAQ) 130. Eisenhower was off the Virginia coast conducting carrier qualifications, the deck landings that certify pilots to operate from the ship, after completing a maintenance period…