In December, 2024, the US lost an F-18 jet (but the pilots ditched and were recovered) to a friendly fire incident. The Navy F-18 were launched from a US aircraft carrier and were fighting Houthi drones from Yemen.
In April 2025, a U.S. Navy F/A-18E Super Hornet fighter fell off the side of the aircraft carrier USS Harry S. Truman while the ship was conducting evasive maneuvers in response to incoming Houthi threats.
UPDATE: A US official said that initial reports from the scene indicated that the Truman made a hard turn to evade Houthi fire, which contributed to the fighter jet falling overboard. https://t.co/TqrvCDUy3T https://t.co/2NFimBjl0A
— Natasha Bertrand (@NatashaBertrand) April 28, 2025
Truman had only returned to sea on Feb. 16 after repairs in Greece following a collision with a commercial ship in the Mediterranean Sea off the coast of Egypt’s Port Said earlier in the month. Though the ship suffered damaged, none of the aircraft onboard were damaged and none of the crew were injured as a result.
Brian Wang is a Futurist Thought Leader and a popular Science blogger with 1 million readers per month. His blog Nextbigfuture.com is ranked #1 Science News Blog. It covers many disruptive technology and trends including Space, Robotics, Artificial Intelligence, Medicine, Anti-aging Biotechnology, and Nanotechnology.
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Could the lost jets not be lost but a transfer to our allies in the area. Why are we not trying to retrieve them?