Two VFA-41 F/A-18F Super Hornets down in the Pacific

Fighter jets crash over Pacific Ocean; four missing

Two Super Hornet fighter jets crashed over the Pacific Ocean about 80 mile
south-west of Monterey, Calif., during routine training on Friday morning.
The Coast Guard was searching for four missing aviators.

The Naval Air Force, U.S. Pacific Fleet, said the two F/A-18-F jets, based
at the Lemoore Naval Air Station, crashed at about 9:40 a.m. while in a
training exercise with six VF-41 Super Hornets. The two fighter jets were
not carrying any weapons, the Navy said.

The cause of the accident was under investigation, the Navy said.

Navy spokesman Cmdr. William Fenick said at the Pentagon that he did not
know if the planes collided.

A Coast Guard plane and a commercial fishing vessel were at the accident
scene searching for the four missing aviators, but Coast Guard spokeswoman
Veronica Bandrowsky said at noon there had been no signs of survivors or any
sightings of bodies.

The Air National Guard also dispatched a helicopter from Moffett Field with
two rescue swimmers aboard.

A Navy spokeswoman said the pilots were members of the Black Aces, a new
squadron at Lemoore.
—

Steve Rush Touchdown-News

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