WASHINGTON – The Navy’s Pacific Fleet reports that both a fighter jet and a helicopter from the aircraft carrier Nimitz crashed into the South China Sea within a half-hour of each other.
The three crew members aboard the MH-60R Seahawk helicopter were rescued on Sunday afternoon. The two pilots of the F/A-18F Super Hornet fighter jet ejected and were also safely retrieved. All five individuals are described as being “in safe and stable condition,” according to the fleet’s statement.
Currently, the cause of the crashes is being investigated, the statement noted.
President Donald Trump mentioned to reporters aboard Air Force One on Monday, while traveling to Tokyo, that the crashes could potentially have been caused by “bad fuel.” He dismissed any suggestions of foul play and insisted that he had “nothing to hide.”
The USS Nimitz is on its way back to its home base at Kitsap Naval Base in Washington after spending much of the summer deployed in the Middle East, responding to attacks on civilian vessels by Yemen’s Houthi rebels.
This marks the final stage of deployment for the aircraft carrier before its retirement.
There’s been concern as another carrier, the USS Harry S. Truman, has faced a series of accidents during its recent mission in the Middle East.
For instance, in December, the guided missile cruiser USS Gettysburg mistakenly shot down an F/A-18 jet from the Truman. Earlier, in April, another F/A-18 fighter jet slipped off the Truman’s hangar deck, landing in the Red Sea.
In May, an F/A fighter jet that landed on a carrier in the Red Sea apparently missed a steel cable meant to stop landing planes and ended up going overboard, prompting two pilots to eject.
Fortunately, no sailors lost their lives in these incidents. However, the findings from the ongoing investigations into these events haven’t been disclosed yet.
