A fighter jet and a helicopter based mostly off the plane provider USS Nimitz each crashed into the South China Sea inside half-hour of one another, the Navy’s Pacific Fleet mentioned.
The three crew members of the MH-60R Sea Hawk helicopter have been rescued on Sunday afternoon, and the 2 aviators within the F/A-18F Tremendous Hornet fighter jet ejected and have been recovered safely, and all 5 “are secure and in secure situation,” the fleet mentioned in an announcement.
The causes of the 2 crashes have been underneath investigation, the assertion mentioned.
President Donald Trump, talking to reporters aboard Air Pressure One en path to Tokyo on Monday, mentioned the incidents might have been attributable to “unhealthy gasoline.” He dominated out foul play and mentioned there was “nothing to cover.”
The usNimitz is returning to its residence port in Naval Base Kitsap in Washington state after having been deployed to the Center East for a lot of the summer time as a part of the U.S. response to assaults by Yemen’s Houthi rebels on business delivery. The provider is on its last deployment earlier than decommissioning.
Historical past of incidents
One other plane provider, the usHarry S. Truman, suffered a collection of mishaps in latest months whereas deployed to the Center East.
In December, the guided-missile cruiser USS Gettysburg mistakenly shot down an F/A-18 jet from the Truman.
Then, in April, one other F/A-18 fighter jet slipped off the Truman’s hangar deck and fell into the Pink Sea.
And in Could, an F/A fighter jet touchdown on the provider within the Pink Sea went overboard after apparently failing to catch the metal cables used to cease touchdown planes and forcing its two pilots to eject.
No sailors have been killed in any of these mishaps. The outcomes of investigations into these incidents have but to be launched.
