In an unexpected incident in the United States, two South Carolina Air National Guard F-16 fighter jets bumped into each other when in air in eastern Georgia, media report said.
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Officials say the F-16’s collided in the sky above Jefferson County Georgia Tuesday night.
The jets were assigned to the South Carolina Air National Guard’s 169th Fighter Wing, which operates out of McEntire Joint National Guard Base in Eastover. He said anyone who finds additional pieces of wreckage should not touch them for safety reasons but instead call police or the National Guard.
Gentile declined to discuss what led to the collision but said it occurred during routine training for the unit’s air defense suppression mission.
The Air National Guard says they have not located the planes and asked local authorities not to approach the debris. Officials say a safety board has been activated and the U.S. Air Force will be conducting a detailed safety investigation.
The pilot of the jet died from injuries sustained during the crash.
The crash site is known as the Townsend Bombing Range and is where South Carolina Air National Guard fighter jets routinely train for their electronic warfare and bombing missions.
The aircraft were purchased in the 1990s for $30 million to $32 million each, Gentile said. The South Carolina Army National Guard was flying Gentile to Georgia aboard a UH-60 Blackhawk helicopter, King said.
Both pilots eject safely, admitted in hospital.
It appears that both crashes occurred in two different wooded areas.
The two pilots are in a hospital near the area, said spokesman Lt. Stephen Hudson.
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There were no injuries on the ground, Jefferson County Fire Chief Jim Anderson said Wednesday. Organizers plan to add another attraction to the feature flying show, as well as a tribute to the late Captain Jeff Kuss. Alex Turner, ejected safely.
