2 Navy aviators are declared dead after a fighter jet crashed in Washington state

[Pelican Press 0]

This is the hidden content, please

• Sign In
• or
• Sign Up

2 Navy aviators are declared ***** after a fighter jet crashed in Washington state

MOUNT RAINIER NATIONAL PARK, Wash. (AP) — Two crew members who were missing following

This is the hidden content, please

• Sign In
• or
• Sign Up

in mountainous terrain in Washington during a routine training flight have been declared *****, the U.S. Navy said Sunday.

The EA-18G Growler jet from the Electronic ******* Squadron

This is the hidden content, please

• Sign In
• or
• Sign Up

on Tuesday afternoon, according to Whidbey Island Naval Air Station. Search teams, including a U.S. Navy MH-60S helicopter, immediately launched from NAS Whidbey Island to try to find the crew and ****** site.

Army Special Forces soldiers trained in mountaineering, high-angle rescue and technical communications were brought in to reach the wreckage, which was located Wednesday by an aerial crew resting at about 6,000 feet (1,828 meters) in a remote, steep and heavily wooded area east of Mount Rainier, officials said.

Locating the missing crew members “as quickly and as safely as possible” had been their priority, Capt. David Ganci, commander, Electronic ******* Wing, U.S. Pacific Fleet, said Thursday.

The aviators’ names won’t be released until a day after their next of kin have been notified, the Navy wrote in a press release Sunday, adding that search and rescue efforts have shifted into a long-term salvage and recovery operation as the cause of the ****** is still being investigated.

“It is with a heavy heart that we share the loss of two beloved Zappers,” said Cmdr. Timothy Warburton, commanding officer of the aviators’ Electronic ******* Squadron, in the press release.

“Our priority right now is taking care of the families of our fallen aviators. … We are grateful for the ongoing teamwork to safely recover the deceased.”Ganci said they could not identify the missing crew until 24 hours after their families had been notified of their status.

The ****** ******** under investigation.

The EA-18G Growler is similar to the F/A-18F Super Hornet and includes sophisticated electronic warfare devices. Most of the Growler squadrons are based at Whidbey Island. One squadron is based at Marine Corps Air Station Iwakuni, Japan.

The “Zappers” were recently deployed on the USS Dwight D. Eisenhower.

The search took place near Mount Rainier, a towering active volcano that is blanketed in snowfields and glaciers year-round.

The first production of the Growler was delivered to Whidbey Island in 2008. In the past 15 years, the Growler has operated around the globe supporting major actions, the Navy said. The plane seats a pilot in front and an electronics operator behind them.

“The EA-18G Growler aircraft we fly represents the most advanced technology in airborne Electronic ******* and stands as the Navy’s first line of defense in hostile environments,” the Navy said

This is the hidden content, please

• Sign In
• or
• Sign Up

. Each aircraft costs about $67 million.

Military aircraft training exercises and travel can be dangerous and sometimes result in crashes, injuries and deaths.

In May, an F-35 fighter jet on its way from Texas to Edwards Air Force Base near Los Angeles

This is the hidden content, please

• Sign In
• or
• Sign Up

after the pilot stopped to refuel in New Mexico. The pilot was the only person on board in that case and was taken to a hospital with serious injuries.

Last year, eight U.S. Air Force special Operations Command service members were ******* when a CV-22B Osprey aircraft they were flying in

This is the hidden content, please

• Sign In
• or
• Sign Up

of Japan.

——

This story has been updated to correct the Navy says it has declared the crew members *****, not found them *****.

This is the hidden content, please

• Sign In
• or
• Sign Up

#Navy #aviators #declared #***** #fighter #jet #crashed #Washington #state

This is the hidden content, please

• Sign In
• or
• Sign Up

This is the hidden content, please

• Sign In
• or
• Sign Up