US Navy F/A-18C havarert

Navy pilot killed during flight training in Nevada


Coughing among pilots and fears that contaminants were leaking into their breathing

The U.S. Navy said Monday one of its pilots was killed during a training flight in Western Nevada.

The statement from the U.S. Pacific Fleet said the pilot crashed late Saturday afternoon, leaving his F/A-18C craft at a "total loss," Fox News reported.

Rescue crews spent hours trying to get to the plane's debris due to snowy weather and treacherous mountainous terrain, Lt. Reagan Lauritzen said.

The jet - a loaner from the Marines for the Naval Strike and Air Warfare Center - crashed about 70 miles east of Naval Air Station Fallon, the Navy spokesman said, Fox News reported.

The pilot's name is being withheld, pending notification of next of kin. Meanwhile, the cause of the crash is being investigated.