"The F/A-18E was actively under tow in the hangar bay when the move crew lost control of the aircraft. The aircraft and tow tractor were lost overboard," the Navy said in a statement.

"All personnel are accounted for, with one sailor sustaining a minor injury," it said, adding that the carrier and its air wing remain mission capable and that the incident is under investigation.

The F/A-18E reached initial operating capability in the early 2000s and had a unit cost of more than $67 million as of fiscal year 2021, according to a Navy fact sheet.

The Truman is one of two US aircraft carriers currently operating in the Middle East, where Washington's forces have been hammering Yemen's Huthi rebels with strikes since mid-March in an attempt to end the threat they pose to ships in the region.