A two-seater F/A-18 Super Hornet fighter jet of the US Navy, assigned to the Red Rippers of Strike Fighter Squadron 11 out of Naval Air Station Oceana, Virginia, was shot down over the Red Sea in what was said to be a friendly fire. Two Navy pilots were recovered alive after ejecting from the aircraft.
'Red Rippers' of Strike Fighter Squadron is responsible for protecting merchant traffic in the Red Sea from Houthi attacks from Yemen.
The aircraft that was shot down had just flown off the deck of the USS Harry S. Truman aircraft carrier, the US Central Command (CENTCOM) said. The CENTCOM had recently said the Truman had entered the Mideast, without specifying that the carrier and its battle group was in the Red Sea.
The guided-missile cruiser USS Gettysburg, which is part of the USS Harry S. Truman Carrier Strike Group, mistakenly fired on and hit the aircraft, a statement from CENTCOM read.
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“Initial assessments indicate that one of the crew members sustained minor injuries.... This incident was not the result of hostile fire, and a full investigation is underway.”
While the CENTCOM did not specify the mission of the pilots on the fighter jet, it was shot down at the time when the US military was conducting airstrikes targeting Yemen's Houthi rebels.
It wasn't immediately clear how the Gettysburg could mistake an F/A-18 for an enemy aircraft or missile, particularly as ships in a battle group remain linked by both radar and radio communication.
However, CENTCOM said warships and aircraft earlier shot down multiple Houthi drones and an anti-ship cruise missile launched by the rebels.
Sailors merely have seconds to make decisions on incoming hostile fire.
