US fighter jet crashes into sea off UK coast
June 15, 2020
Rescuers discovered the body of the US Air Force pilot who lost his life when his F-15 fighter plane crashed on Monday morning, after taking off from southeast England.
"It is with a very heavy heart that I confirm the pilot of the downed F-15 C Eagle has been located and confirmed deceased," said the US Colonel Will Marshall, the commander of the UK-based 48th Fighter Wing.
"This is a tragic loss for the 48th Fighter Wing community, and our deepest condolences go out to the pilot's family and the 493rd Fighter Squadron."
Previously, they confirmed that an F-15C Eagle jet had crashed in the North Sea at around 09:40 a.m. local time (0840 GMT).
The US Air Force said "the aircraft was on a routine training mission with one pilot on board" at the time of the accident.
The statement added that the cause of the crash was still unknown and that UK Search and Rescue had been deployed.
The aircraft came from RAF Lakenheath, the largest US Air Force-operated base in England, located near the village of Lakenheath in Suffolk, about 25 miles (40 km) northeast of Cambridge.
The fighter wing shared photographs of three fighter jets, tweeting: "Ready to take on Monday like…#WeAreLiberty! #ReadyAF" ahead of the crash.
According to the UK coastguard, the plane went down some 137 kilometers (85 miles) off the Yorkshire coast.
mvb,dj/msh (AP, Reuters)