{"id":501,"date":"2026-07-27T18:44:52","date_gmt":"2026-07-27T18:44:52","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/checkthenews.store\/?p=501"},"modified":"2026-07-27T18:44:52","modified_gmt":"2026-07-27T18:44:52","slug":"breaking-news-sad-news-just-confirmed-the-passing-of","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/checkthenews.store\/?p=501","title":{"rendered":"BREAKING NEWS!! Sad news just confirmed the passing of\u2026"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>The\u00a0<strong>U.S. Navy<\/strong>\u00a0has officially identified the two crew members lost in the fatal crash of an\u00a0<strong>EA-18G Growler<\/strong>\u00a0near\u00a0<strong>Mount Rainier<\/strong>, Washington. Lt. Cmdr.\u00a0<strong>Lyndsay P. Evans<\/strong>\u00a0and Lt.\u00a0<strong>Serena N. Wileman<\/strong>, both 31, were distinguished members of the\u00a0<strong>Electronic Attack Squadron 130<\/strong>, famously known as the \u201c<strong>Zappers<\/strong>.\u201d Based at\u00a0<strong>Naval Air Station Whidbey Island<\/strong>, these aviators were recognized for their tactical excellence and historic contributions to naval aviation.\u00a0<strong>Evans<\/strong>, a\u00a0<strong>Naval Flight Officer<\/strong>, was a trailblazer who participated in the first all-female\u00a0<strong>Super Bowl LVII<\/strong>\u00a0flyover in 2023.\u00a0<strong>Wileman<\/strong>, a\u00a0<strong>Naval Aviator<\/strong>, was a highly decorated pilot whose service included the\u00a0<strong>Navy Unit Commendation Medal<\/strong>\u00a0and\u00a0<strong>Combat Action Ribbon<\/strong>.<\/p>\n<p>Recovery operations are currently underway in the steep, heavily wooded terrain of the\u00a0<strong>Cascade Mountains<\/strong>, where wreckage was located at an altitude of approximately 6,000 feet. The complex operation shifted from search-and-rescue to recovery after officials confirmed the aviators had perished. Washington Governor\u00a0<strong>Jay Inslee<\/strong>\u00a0authorized the\u00a0<strong>National Guard<\/strong>\u00a0to provide 24-hour security at the site to assist\u00a0<strong>Navy<\/strong>\u00a0salvage teams as they navigate the difficult environment. The\u00a0<strong>EA-18G Growler<\/strong>, a critical $67 million electronic warfare platform derived from the\u00a0<strong>F\/A-18 Super Hornet<\/strong>, was performing a routine training flight when the accident occurred. The exact cause of the crash remains the subject of a rigorous ongoing investigation by military authorities.<\/p>\n<p>The loss has reverberated through the military community, drawing tributes from high-ranking officials and fellow service members. U.S. Senator\u00a0<strong>Patty Murray<\/strong>\u00a0described\u00a0<strong>Evans<\/strong>\u00a0as a pioneering leader who broke barriers, noting that both women paved the way for future generations of female aviators. Squadron Commander\u00a0<strong>Timothy Warburton<\/strong>\u00a0emphasized that the current priority remains supporting the families of the fallen and the wider\u00a0<strong>Growler community<\/strong>. As the\u00a0<strong>Navy<\/strong>\u00a0prepares for a long-term salvage effort, the legacy of\u00a0<strong>Evans<\/strong>\u00a0and\u00a0<strong>Wileman<\/strong>\u2014built on courage and professional achievement\u2014will continue to inspire those within the\u00a0<strong>Electronic Attack<\/strong>\u00a0community and the broader naval aviation fleet.<\/p>\n<div class=\"code-block code-block-1\">\n<div data-type=\"_mgwidget\" data-widget-id=\"1972821\" data-uid=\"104ad\">\n<div id=\"mgw1972821_104ad\">\n<div>\n<div class=\"mgbox\">\n<div class=\"mgheader\" data-template-type=\"header\" data-template-placed=\"before\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>The\u00a0U.S. Navy\u00a0has officially identified the two crew members lost in the fatal crash of an\u00a0EA-18G Growler\u00a0near\u00a0Mount Rainier, Washington. Lt. Cmdr.\u00a0Lyndsay P. Evans\u00a0and Lt.\u00a0Serena N. Wileman, both 31, were distinguished members &hellip; <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":502,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-501","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news"],"brizy_media":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/checkthenews.store\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/501","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/checkthenews.store\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/checkthenews.store\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/checkthenews.store\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/checkthenews.store\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=501"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/checkthenews.store\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/501\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":503,"href":"https:\/\/checkthenews.store\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/501\/revisions\/503"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/checkthenews.store\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/502"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/checkthenews.store\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=501"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/checkthenews.store\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=501"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/checkthenews.store\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=501"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}