US air force jet crashes
into North Sea during training mission
Search and rescue teams deployed after F-15 crashes off coast of
north-east England
A US air force F-15 aircraft based
in the UK has crashed into the North Sea off the Yorkshire coast while on a
training mission.
The status of the pilot onboard is
unknown following the crash, which happened on a routine training mission at
about 9.40am on Monday. UK search and rescue teams were being deployed to try
to locate the pilot.
The pilot and plane are part of the
48th Fighter Wing stationed at RAF Lakenheath in Suffolk, home to the largest
US air force base in England.
A statement from the 48th said the
causes of the accident were not yet known.he jet involved was an F-15C, a
single-seater version of the long-established Boeing twin engine fighter, which
has been used by the US air force since 1979.
The coastguard said it received
reports of a plane going down into the sea 74 nautical miles off Flamborough
Head on the Yorkshire coast. “The HM Coastguard helicopter from Humberside has
been sent along with Bridlington and Scarborough RNLI lifeboats,” a spokesman
added.
Col Will Marshall, commander of the
48th Fighter Wing, known also as the Liberty Wing, said in a video update that
the pilot of the aircraft was still missing. The senior officer said he was
grateful for the timely response of UK search and rescue teams and added that
the unit remained “hopeful that our Liberty wing airman will be located and
recovered”.
The 48th Fighter Wing, which has
operated from Lakenheath since 1960, has more than 4,500 “active-duty military
members”. Its mission statement is to “provide worldwide responsive combat air
power and support”.
In October 2014, an F-15D fighter
jet based at Lakenheath crashed in fields near Spalding in Lincolnshire. The
pilot ejected safely, suffering only minor injuries, and no one on the ground
was hurt.
A US air force investigation found
the crash was caused by the “angle of attack” of the aircraft and imperfections
in the assembly of the jet’s nose cap.
In October 2015, the US pilot Maj
Taj Sareen died when his F/A-18 Hornet jet crashed
on farmland near Lakenheath. A
subsequent investigation found the 34-year-old did not report problems with his
aircraft before takeoff.
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McDonnell Douglas
F-15C Eagle - Crash into sea (U.K.)
Narrative:
A US Air Force F-15C Eagle, callsign "Chosen 4", part of a for ship, crashed into the North Sea. Search and rescue operations are underway. The HM Coastguard helicopter from Humberside has been sent along with Bridlington and Scarborough RNLI lifeboats. https://aviation-safety.net/wikibase/236999 Back to Top |
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U.S. Air Force pilot
missing after F-15C fighter jet crashes into sea off U.K. coast
 A U.S. Air Force F-15C Eagle fighter jet crashed into the North Sea off the coast of England on Monday, the Air Forces' 48th Fighter Wing confirmed. The jet, deployed from Royal Air Force Base Lakenheath in eastern England, northeast of London, crashed at about 4:40 a.m. Eastern. "At the time of the accident, the aircraft was on a routine training mission with one pilot on board," the 48th Fighter Wing said in a brief statement, adding that the cause of the crash remained unclear. In a video statement provided by the U.S. military, Colonel Will Marshall of the 48th Fighter Wing said later Monday that the pilot was "still missing." "We will provide updates as they become available, while prioritizing respect and consideration for the pilot's family," Marshall said. The Air Force said a British search and rescue team had been called to support the efforts to find the pilot. BBC News quoted a spokesperson with the U.K. Coastguard as saying one helicopter and two lifeboats had been sent to the area, about 90 miles off the coast of East Yorkshire, to help with the search. The Coastguard said other vessels were heading to the area to help, too, after hearing the agency's mayday call. Hours before the crash, RAF Lakenheath posted a photo to the base's twitter account showing F-15s in flight, saying the 48th Fighter Wing was ready to "take on Monday." |
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