The Navy has confirmed that a special warfare sailor died on Tuesday during training in California.
Special Warfare Boat Operator 2nd class Noah Tobin, a sailor assigned to Special Boat Team 20, died “while participating in a parachute training event in Porterville, California,” a spokesperson for Naval Special Warfare Command told Military.com on Thursday.
The spokesperson added that Tobin was attending the Naval Parachute Course that was being run by the Naval Special Warfare Advanced Training Command — the same command that trains the famed Navy SEAL operators.
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Deaths amid special warfare training events — especially parachuting — are rare. The last known parachuting death for the community was in 2023 when Chief Special Warfare Operator Michael Ernst died following a “military freefall training accident” in Arizona.
The Navy conducted an investigation into that mishap but never made its results public.
The spokesperson for NSW said that they “mourn the loss of our sailor, and our thoughts are with his family, friends and colleagues during this difficult time.”
“Naval Special Warfare is providing grief counseling and assistance to the sailor’s family and teammates,” they added.
According to records provided to Military.com, Tobin enlisted in the Navy in 2021 from California and graduated boot camp in December 2021.
He proceeded to graduate from special warfare training in 2023 and earned his Enlisted Special Warfare Combatant Crewman qualification.
Tobin reported to his first command, officially listed as an “East Coast-based Naval Special Warfare Unit,” in May 2024.
Typically, the Navy does not provide specific units for special warfare sailors in public records, but the description matches Special Boat Team 20, which is stationed in Virginia.
Special warfare boat operators are highly trained sailors who specialize in small watercraft the Navy uses primarily to support Navy SEALs, to include tactics like clandestine maritime insertions and extractions, as well as weapons support.
Special Boat Team 20 is “focused on coastal operations,” a Navy video said.
“As the sailors who insert and extract Navy SEALs from classified locations around the world, they are true warriors — highly trained, disciplined and distinguished,” according to a Navy recruiting page.
The spokesperson said that the training command where the death occurred “has paused parachute training to conduct a safety stand-down.”
“The cause of the incident is currently unknown, and investigations are underway,” they added.
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