Bay Area sailor dies aboard USS Ronald Reagan

PITTSBURG, Calif. - The body of a Bay Area sailor, who died aboard the USS Ronald Reagan, returned home on Thursday.

23-year-old Danyelle Luckey went from being a little girl in braids, to a graduate of cosmetology school, who enlisted in the Navy.

Five months later, her parents never expected the Navy personnel specialist to come home in a flag draped casket.

The military honor guard escorted the white hearse that carried her body from SFO to her hometown in Pittsburg.

"She told me she wasn't feeling so good like she had a little flu. She went to the medics, they told her she was seasick. She said no, I know the difference. She said like the flu chills and all," said her mom Annette Luckey.

Four days later, Danyelle passed away aboard the USS Ronald Reagan in the Philippines Sea.

Her family was told she suffered from cardiac arrest, and according to the Stars and Stripes, a military newspaper, her death is still being investigated.

"She had a lot of courage to sign up for the navy," said her brother Derrick Luckey. "More courage than I did because I would never find myself doing that and I'm so proud of her for taking that step to try to better her life."