Key points
- One sailor sustains minor injury
- Incident is under investigation
- Fighter jets are routinely towed around hangar deck to park them
ISLAMABAD: A US F/A-18 jet fighter has fallen off the deck of an aircraft carrier deployed to the Red Sea in the Middle East, AP and ABC news reported.
ABC cited the US Navy as saying as sailors were towing the aircraft into place in the hangar bay of the USS Harry S Truman, they lost control, and it went overboard.
The crew members who were in the pilot seat of the Super Hornet and on the small towing tractor jumped out before the jet and the tug went into the Red Sea. One sailor sustained a minor injury, according to AP.
“The F/A-18E was actively under tow in the hangar bay when the move crew lost control of the aircraft. The aircraft and tow tractor were lost overboard,” AP cited the Navy statement as saying. The jet was part of Strike Fighter Squadron 136, it added.
Under investigation
Fighter jets are routinely towed around the hangar deck to park them where they are needed for any flight operations or other work. It is unclear whether there will be an effort to recover the jet, which costs about $60 million, according to AP.
The incident is under investigation, ABC reported.
The Truman has been deployed to the Middle East for months and recently has been involved in stepped-up military operations against the Houthis, according to AP.
