U.S. Navy Loses Jet, Helicopter in South China Sea

A U.S. Navy helicopter and a fighter jet both crashed within the same half hour during separate routine operations over the South China Sea, with all crew members safely rescued, the Navy’s Pacific Fleet said, Audrey Jeong and Isabelle D’Antonio reported for CNN.

The F/A-18 is at least the fourth of the $60 million fighter jets the Navy has lost this year. (Photo: NAVAIR) 

The Navy has launched an investigation into the cause of both incidents, which occurred over strategic waters viewed as a potential flashpoint for global conflict.

U.S. President Donald Trump called the back-to-back crashes “very unusual” and raised the possibility of a fuel problem while speaking to reporters aboard Air Force One.

The Navy said on social media that an MH-60R Seahawk helicopter went down around 2:45 p.m. local time “while conducting routine operations from the aircraft carrier USS Nimitz.” Search-and-rescue crews recovered all three crew members safely.

About 30 minutes later, an F/A-18F Super Hornet fighter also crashed while conducting routine operations from the Nimitz. Both crew members ejected and were safely recovered, the Navy said.

The F/A-18 is at least the fourth of the $60 million fighter jets the Navy has lost this year.

Bracketed by China and several Southeast Asian nations, parts of the vital South China Sea are claimed by multiple governments, but Beijing asserts ownership over almost all of the strategic waterway — in defiance of an international court ruling.

Over the past two decades, China has fortified its territorial claims by constructing military installations on contested islands and reefs.

The U.S. maintains that China’s assertions and military buildup threaten freedom of navigation and free trade in the waterway.