Two U.S. officials reported that an American F-18 fighter jet was lost in the Red Sea on Tuesday after veering off the deck of the aircraft carrier USS Harry S. Truman—the second such incident in just about a week.
اضافة اعلان
The officials, speaking on condition of anonymity, said the aircraft failed to stop properly after landing on the carrier. One of them noted that the pilots ejected safely before the plane plunged into the water and were rescued by a specialized helicopter team.
The U.S. Navy has yet to issue an official statement on the incident.
One of the officials said medical evaluations confirmed that the pilots sustained only minor injuries, and no deck crew were harmed.
CNN was the first to report the incident.
Just last week, another fighter jet fell into the sea from the same carrier, which has been supporting U.S. strikes against the Houthi group in Yemen.
The cost of an American F-18 fighter jet exceeds $60 million, and such incidents are rare. The occurrence of two crashes within such a short span is likely to prompt increased scrutiny of the aircraft carrier's operational procedures.
— (Reuters)
