OREGON INLET, N.C. – The U.S. Coast Guard responded about 25 miles off the North Carolina coast Thursday morning after receiving reports of a collision between two planes.
According to the Navy, the incident involved two F/A-18F Super Hornets that were flying approximately 24 nautical miles off the coast of Cape Hatteras.
The Navy confirms that the jets were from Strike Fighter Squadron 211 (VFA-211) based at Naval Air Station Oceana.
The incident was reported around 10:40 a.m. and an HH-60 Jayhawk Coast Guard helicopter dispatched from Coast Guard Air Station Elizabeth City to assist.
There were two pilots in each jet and all four were recovered from the water.
The Coast Guard reports that the crew of the commercial fishing vessel Jamie recovered all four pilots. The Coast Guard helicopter then hoisted the pilots and transported them to Sentara Norfolk General Hospital.
At 12:50 p.m., one Coast Guard helicopter arrived at Sentara Norfolk General Hospital carrying two of the four pilots. They were both able to move themselves to the waiting stretcher.
At 1:20 p.m., a second Coast Guard helicopter arrived at the hospital carrying the remaining two pilots. They both were able to climb from the helicopter and walk into the hospital on their own.
NewsChannel 3 will have updates here and on air throughout the afternoon.
A safety investigation will be carried out to determine the cause of the accident.
In the past several years, there have been several mishaps involving military aircraft in Hampton Roads.
A malfunctioning F/A-18 jet plummeted into the Mayfair Mews Apartments in Virginia Beach on April 6, 2012. The stricken Super Hornet destroyed several apartment buildings off Birdneck Road near 24th Street. Two aviators ejected and survived with minor injuries. No one on the ground was injured.
In August 2013, a pair of Air National Guard F-16s clipped wings off the Eastern Shore. One pilot ejected and his jet crashed. He was rescued by a Coast Guard air crew.
On January 8, 2014, a Navy MH-53E Sea Dragon Helicopter crashed into the frigid Atlantic about 18 miles off the coast of Virginia Beach. Five men were aboard, but three did not survive.
On January 15, 2015, a Navy F/A-18E Super Hornet aircraft crashed approximately 45 miles off the coast of Virginia Beach. The jet was from Strike Fighter Squadron 143 (VFA-143) attached to Carrier Air Wing Seven at Oceana Naval Air Station. It was conducting routine training at the time of the crash. The pilot was rescued and survived.
http://wtkr.com/2016/05/26/report-of-plane-collision-off-north-carolina-coast/
Billion dollar planes, 1,000 hours of training and flight time, the plane has got stuff to tell the pilots what is within a few feet and these two planes crash into each other. Bull Dren: these people were hotdogging and it bit them in the ass.