Asante McCalla, 24, was serving as a lieutenant junior grade in the U.S. Navy when he went missing from USS Lake Erie (CG 70) on August 18, 2018. The cruiser was conducting routine training off the coast of Southern California with the John C. Stennis Carrier Strike Group when McCalla failed to report for duty the next morning, prompting a man-overboard search.

The Navy and Coast Guard mounted an extensive search and rescue effort that covered more than 16,550 square nautical miles. After four days without a sign of McCalla, the search was suspended; the Navy later declared him deceased after ten days missing. McCalla, a Morehouse College graduate who earned lieutenant junior grade in May 2018, came from Georgia and is remembered by a grieving family that has since established a scholarship in his name.

The circumstances of his disappearance remain unclear; does anyone with knowledge of the USS Lake Erie’s operations or that training deployment have information to share?