VIDEO: Marine Pilot Missing After Fighter Jet Crashes Near Air Station Miramar

Officials are working to determine what happened to a pilot when a U.S. military F/A-18 Hornet fighter jet crashed late Thursday in San Diego, California, near Marine Corps Air Station Miramar.

UPDATE:

A military fighter jet crash left a pilot dead Thursday near San Diego California, according to NBC News.

Officials say the pilot was the only person onboard the aircraft when it crashed near Marine Corps Air Station Miramar.

“The crashed plane was attached to the Marine All-Weather Attack Squadron 224, based in Beaufort, South Carolina, and had been in California for a training mission, officials said,” the NBC article stated.

The Marine pilot’s name will not be released pending notification of next of kin.

Original story continues: 

The accident happened a few minutes before midnight, NBC News reported Friday.

In an advisory shared Friday morning, base officials with MCAS Miramar said, “We are aware of an accident involving an F/A-18 Hornet in the vicinity of MCAS Miramar at 11:54 P.M. PST.”

Advisory pic.twitter.com/GX5aEj5Y2h

— MCAS Miramar (@MCASMiramarCA) August 25, 2023

The advisory continued:

This aircraft is not part of 3d MAW but was operating out of MCAS Miramar. The crash site is on government property east of the air station and there are not indications of damage to property on the ground. Search and rescue actions are ongoing. An investigation has begun. We will provide more information as it becomes available.

Per NBC, crews with the San Diego Fire-Rescue Department used a helicopter to aid in the search in the hours after the incident, and ground crews also joined the effort at the scene near Interstate 15.

The pilot was reportedly ejected from the aircraft before it crashed, and CBS 8 shared video footage of search crews flying over the site.

“MCAS Miramar tells us they found the aircraft but the status of the pilot is still unknown,” a reporter for the outlet said.

According to the Naval Air Systems Command website, the “F/A-18 Hornet became the nation’s first all-weather fighter and attack aircraft and was designed for traditional strike applications such as interdiction and close air support without compromising its fighter capabilities.”

The site continued:

The F/A-18 A-D is employed in Marine Corps fighter attack squadrons, U.S. Navy and Marine Corps Reserve squadrons, the Navy Flight Demonstration Team (Blue Angles), and various other fleet support roles.

The Hornet demonstrated its capabilities and versatility early in its lifecycle during Operation Desert Storm, wherein the aircraft shot down enemy fighters and bombed enemy targets within the same mission, proving its lethal effectiveness as a strike fighter. Hornets taking direct hits from surface-to-air missiles, recovering successfully, being repaired quickly, and flying again the next day further cemented the robustness and survivability of the aircraft.

In October, military officials said a pilot ejected from an F-35 combat jet as the plane went down and ultimately crashed into the runway at Hill Air Force Base in Utah, UPI reported at the time.

“No injuries were reported on the ground, and the unidentified pilot was expected to survive after the Lightning II aircraft went down during a routine training mission, the 388th Fighter Wing unit said in a statement on its official Twitter account,” the article said.