Two aviators died Wednesday after a U.S. Naval Air Forces jet crashed in waters near Key West, Fla.
The aviators were on a training flight in the dual-seated F/A-18 Super Hornet and making their final approach toward the Naval Air Station Key West when the jet went down. The aircraft hit the water about 4:30 p.m., about one mile east of the runway, U.S. Naval Air Forces said.
Search and rescue crews responded quickly and were able to recover the aviators from the water. They were taken by ambulance to the Lower Keys Medical Center. But about three hours later, U.S. Naval Air Forces reported that the aviators did not survive their injuries.
“We are sad to report that both aviators have been declared deceased,” U.S. Naval Air Forces said in a statement. “Their families are in our prayers.”
Officials declined to release the aviators’ identities, pending notification of next-of-kin, but did say that one was a pilot and the other was a weapons systems officer. They were based at Naval Air Station Oceana in Virginia.
President Trump tweeted condolences, saying, “Please join me with your thoughts and prayers for both aviators, their families and our incredible @USNavy.”
The cause of the crash is under investigation, U.S. Naval Air Forces said.
Witnesses described seeing the jet catch fire in midair, then fall from the sky.
“It went a little sideways, then I saw fire,” Barbie Wilson, a local marina owner, told local news. “And then it just literally dropped out of the sky. It was like something out of a movie.”
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