Two US Navy fighter jets collided during a military training exercise in the United States, destroying both aircraft but leaving all crew members unharmed, officials said on Sunday.
The incident occurred around 12:10 p.m. local time at the Mountain Home Air Force Base in the US state of Idaho during a scheduled aerial exercise involving two E/A-18G Growler electronic warfare aircraft.
In a statement, Commodore Amelia Umayam, spokesperson for the US Pacific Fleet under the Naval Air Forces command, confirmed that the two warplanes crashed during the drill.
“Two E/A-18G Growler aircraft were involved in a collision during a training exercise at Mountain Home Air Force Base. Both aircraft were destroyed,” the statement said.
According to the Navy, each aircraft carried two crew members, making a total of four personnel onboard. All of them managed to eject safely immediately after the collision, and no fatalities or serious injuries were reported.
The crash caused debris from the destroyed aircraft to scatter across Idaho State Highway 167, forcing authorities to shut down parts of the roadway for several hours while emergency crews cleared the area.
The cause of the collision remains under investigation, and officials said more details would be released after the inquiry is completed.
The training event marked the first major air exercise at Mountain Home in eight years. The base last hosted a similar drill in 2018, which also ended in tragedy when a fighter jet crashed, killing its pilot at the scene. Following that incident, large-scale exercises at the base had reportedly been suspended until this year.
The E/A-18G Growler is a specialized electronic warfare aircraft used by the US Navy for radar jamming, surveillance, and tactical support missions.
