In this photo obtained from the US Department of Defense, US Navy F/A-18 Hornet multirole combat aircraft are pictured on the deck of the aircraft carrier USS Dwight D. Eisenhower (CVN 69) (IKE) transits the Strait of Hormuz on 26 November 2023. Photo: AFP PHOTO / US Department of Defense/US Navy
The US military said it mistakenly shot down one of its own fighter aircraft over the Red Sea early on Sunday, forcing both pilots to eject.
Both were rescued, one with minor injuries, after the "apparent case of friendly fire," which is being investigated, US Central Command said in a statement.
The fighter was an F/A-18 Hornet flying off the aircraft carrier Harry S. Truman. One of the carrier's escort ships, the missile cruiser Gettysburg, "mistakenly fired on and hit" the plane, the statement said.
The Red Sea has been a hotbed of military activity for more than a year as US forces battle Yemen's Iran-backed Houthi militia, which has carried out attacks against shipping in the region.
The US military said it had fired on Houthi drones and missiles over the Red Sea on Saturday, and had attacked command-and-control and missile storage sites in Sanaa.
- Reuters