Another Navy fighter jet falls off the Truman aircraft carrier, pilots safely ejected

A Department of Defense report stated that two U.S. Navy pilots had to eject from a fighter jet as they were trying to land it on an aircraft carrier in the Red Sea. This incident resulted in the loss of the aircraft, marking the second such occurrence within a week. 

The fighter jet, an F/A-18F Super Hornet from the Strike Fighter Squadron (VFA) 11, was in the process of landing on the USS Harry S. Truman when the arresting system failed. This failure led to the aircraft going overboard, as per an official communication to Fox News Digital. 

The USS Harry S. Truman at sea.  (U.S. Navy photo by Chief Mass Communication Specialist Jose Hernandez)

The $67.4 million aircraft was lost when it was actively under tow in a hangar bay when the crew lost control of the aircraft. 

Sailors towing the aircraft took “immediate action” to move clear of the aircraft before it fell overboard, the Navy said.

During this event, the Harry S. Truman Carrier Strike Group, which consists of U.S. warships operating in the Red Sea, along with an air wing, was confirmed to be at full mission capability.

Armed rebels of the Iran-backed Houthi militia. (Osamah Yahya/picture alliance via Getty Images | REUTERS/Khaled Abdullah)

The strike group comprises the Truman aircraft carrier and nine squadrons of Carrier Air Wing 1, three guided-missile destroyers of Destroyer Squadron 28, and the Ticonderoga-class cruiser USS Gettysburg.

The carrier has been operating in the Red Sea, where it has launched strikes against Iran-backed Houthi terrorists based in Yemen. On Tuesday, Trump announced a ceasefire with the terror group.