US Navy F/A-18 Jet Crashes in Sea off Japan, Engine Trouble Suspected

A United States Navy F/A-18 fighter jet has crashed into the sea off the southern island of Okinawa on Monday.

The fighter jet crashed “due to engine trouble,” Osamu Kosakai, spokesman for the ministry’s Okinawa defense bureau was quoted as saying by Japan Times Monday.

“The fighter jet crashed some 250 kilometers east-southeast of Okinawa’s capital city, Naha, at around 11.45 am. Both the crew members were rescued alive,” Osamu said.

The US Navy’s 7th Fleet said in a statement that an F/A-18 deployed with the USS Ronald Reagan aircraft carrier had experienced a “mechanical issue that resulted in the crew ejecting while conducting routine operations” in the Philippine Sea.

It said the crew had been immediately and safely recovered by search and rescue aircraft from the Reagan and brought back to the ship for evaluation by medical personnel.

The 7th Fleet said the crash is being investigated.

The carrier, home-ported at the US naval base in Yokosuka, Kanagawa Prefecture, is currently conducting operations in the region.