A 21-year-old Navy sailor was killed Monday afternoon on the flight deck of the USS George H. W. Bush, according to Navy officials.
Military.com reports that around 4:45 p.m., Airman Apprentice Joseph Min Naglak was out at sea and was struck by the propeller of an E-2C Hawkeye radar plane while securing it to the flight deck. No one else was injured or killed.
His sister, Stephanie Blair Naglak, told NJ.com that her brother was adopted when he was 2 years old and will always be remembered “as a hero with a big heart.”
“He wanted to join the Navy to give back to a country who gave him so much,” she shared.
According to his fiancée Niki Weber’s Facebook post featuring photos of the pair, the couple became engaged on Sept. 3.
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“The loss of a shipmate is a heartbreaking experience for a crew of a naval vessel,” Cmdr. Dave Hecht, spokesman for Naval Air Force Atlantic, told The Navy Times. “Those aboard USS George H. W. Bush will mourn Naglak’s passiheng and remember him always for his devoted service and sacrifice to our nation.”
According to Military.com, the carrier left the Naval Station in Norfolk, Virginia, on Sept. 10, before Hurricane Florence hit.
