A U.S. fighter jet and a helicopter crashed within half an hour in the South China Sea, raising fresh concerns over aviation safety aboard American aircraft carriers. The two aircraft were part of the USS Nimitz carrier strike group.
All five crew members survived the incidents, the U.S. Navy said, though the rare back-to-back crashes immediately drew scrutiny.
According to the U.S. Pacific Fleet, an MH-60R Seahawk helicopter and an F/A-18F Super Hornet fighter jet crashed on Sunday afternoon shortly after taking off from the Nimitz. Three helicopter crew members were pulled from the water, while the two fighter pilots ejected and were rescued. All were reported to be in stable condition.
Investigations into both accidents are underway.
The Associated Press reported that the USS Nimitz is currently on its final deployment before being decommissioned. After operating throughout the summer in the Middle East, it is now returning to Naval Base Kitsap in Washington state.
Reuters added that the carrier had been sent to the region to reinforce the U.S. military’s presence in response to Houthi attacks on commercial shipping linked to the conflict in Yemen.
This is not the first time the U.S. Navy has faced safety concerns involving carrier-based aircraft. The USS Harry S. Truman experienced multiple similar mishaps over the past year — including an accidental shoot-down of an F/A-18 by the cruiser USS Gettysburg, and several jets sliding off the deck into the Red Sea during landing operations.
No fatalities were recorded in those incidents. Completed investigations have yet to be publicly released.
