Two F/A-18F Super Hornet fighter jets crashed this morning off the coast of North Carolina, the Navy said.
All four crew members were taken to Sentara Norfolk General Hospital, according to a Coast Guard release. The Navy said they were taken for evaluation.
The planes crashed shortly after 10:30 a.m. off Cape Hatteras. The Coast Guard and the commercial fishing vessel Tammy pulled the pilots from the Atlantic. The crew members were flown by helicopter to Norfolk.
The two-seater planes are assigned to Strike Fighter Squadron 211 and stationed at Naval Air Station Oceana.
The Navy is investigating the cause of the accident. It said the crash occurred during a routine training mission. It referred to the incident as “an in-flight mishap.”
First deployed in 2002, the current generation of Super Hornets are capable of use for bombing runs and to fight enemy aircraft. They have most recently fought against the Islamic State and are the planes flown by the Blue Angels, the Navy’s famed flight demonstration squad, according to the Navy.
