Second US Navy jet is lost at sea from Truman aircraft carrier

RNZ News

08-05-2025

By
Natasha Bertrand
,
Katie Bo Lillis
and
Zachary Cohen
, CNN
This photo from the US Navy shows a F/A-18F Super Hornet preparing for launch on the USS Harry S. Truman.
Photo:
US Navy / File via CNN Newsource
Another F/A-18 Super Hornet fighter jet from the USS Harry S. Truman aircraft carrier has been lost in the Red Sea, the
second jet lost from the carrier
in just over a week, five people familiar with the matter told CNN.
It is not entirely clear what happened yet, as the investigation is ongoing, but two of the people said there was some kind of arrestment failure as the jet was trying to land on the carrier and the pilot and weapons systems officer had to eject. They were recovered by a rescue helicopter and are both alive, but they suffered minor injuries, one of the people said.
The jet crashed into the sea and has not been recovered, two of the people familiar with the incident said.
Separately, the Iran-backed Houthi rebel group "took a shot" at the Truman on Tuesday, four of the people said, despite
US President Donald Trump announcing an apparent ceasefire
with the group hours earlier. It is not clear whether the two incidents are related.
The Office of the Secretary of Defense referred all questions about the incidents to the Navy and US Central Command. CNN has reached out to the Navy and CENTCOM for comment.
The loss of the fighter jet comes one week after another F/A-18 jet fell overboard the Truman. That time, initial reports indicated that the Truman made a hard turn to evade Houthi fire, which contributed to the fighter jet falling overboard.
An individual F/A-18 fighter jet costs more than US$60 million ($101m), according to the Navy.
US Naval assets in the Red Sea have repeatedly come under Houthi fire since the Houthis began their attacks against Red Sea shipping in November 2023. In early 2024, a US destroyer in the Red Sea had to use its Phalanx Close-In Weapon System, its last line of defence to missile attacks, when a Houthi-fired cruise missile got as near as a mile away - and therefore seconds from impact.
The Truman aircraft carrier in particular, though, has been plagued with problems as part of its Red Sea deployment. In December, another F/A-18 fighter jet was operating from the Truman when it was "mistakenly fired" upon by the USS Gettysburg and crashed into the Red Sea. Both aviators ejected safely at the time.
Then, in February, the Truman was involved in a collision with a merchant ship near Egypt in the Mediterranean Sea. Following the incident, the commander of the Truman at the time, Captain Dave Snowden, was relieved of duty. Captain Christopher Hill took command of the carrier shortly thereafter.
-CNN