An F/A-18 Hornet fighter jet of the US Marine Corps encountered an incident while performing routine training missions and crashed in a mountainous area in Washington state. The pilot sped away and survived.
According to a statement from the US Marine Corps, the F/A-18 of the 11th Marine Corps Air Force Federation crashed at noon on June 13 (US time).
Video recorded by people shows the pilot escaping the plane with a launch seat while the fighter jet tilted its wings, lost altitude, then crashed into a mountainside and exploded. Police then found the pilot and confirmed that this person was not in life-threatening condition.
The accident caused a forest fire in the area, forcing some people camping nearby to evacuate. The Naches town fire department said that the fire was controlled, but water tanker trucks continued to be on duty to support handling and completely extinguish the remaining fire points.
The cause of the crash has not been announced. Marine Corps Air Force 3, the unit managing Marine Corps Air Force 11, said it has opened an investigation.
The 11th Marine Air Force Federation currently has two F/A-18C Hornet fighter squadrons, the 232nd and 323rd Fighter Squadrons.
The F/A-18C Hornet is a single-seat variant of the F/A-18 carrier-based fighter line, produced in the period 1974-2000. The Hornet line was commissioned into the US Marine Corps in 1983, while the US Navy put this aircraft into operation in 1984.
Currently, the US Navy has disbanded all F/A-18 Hornets to switch to using F/A-18E/F Super Hornets. The US Marine Corps has also disbanded many Hornet units and only about five squadrons operate this type of aircraft, some of which are preparing to switch to F-35C stealth fighters.
