A US Navy F/A-18E Super Hornet fighter jet slipped off an aircraft carrier and sank into the Red Sea in an alarming accident – but the pilot made it out alive, according to the military.
The jet – which cost about $56 million apiece – was being towed out of a hangar Monday on the USS Harry S. Truman when the tractor pulling it lost control.
Both the jet and the tractor fell overboard, according to the Navy.
The pilot and the Navy sailor driving the tractor managed to jump free, with only one sustaining a minor injury.
The USS Truman aircraft carrier group has been subjected to constant threats from the Iran-backed Houthi terror group in Yemen. It is stationed in the Red Sea to protect commercial shipping in the area, which has been regularly attacked by the Houthis.
