A U.S. Navy fighter jet was shot down Sunday in what Central Command said was a “friendly fire” incident during military operations in the Red Sea.
“Two U.S. Navy pilots ejected safely over the Red Sea during the early morning hours of Dec. 22 when their F/A-18 Super Hornet fighter aircraft was shot down in an apparent case of friendly fire,” Centcom said in a statement.
The incident comes as an international military presence battles Iran-backed Houthi rebels based in Yemen, who have attacked merchant shipping in the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden since late 2023.
Centcom said that the guided-missile cruiser Gettysburg mistakenly fired on the fighter, which was based on the aircraft carrier Harry S. Truman.
US fighter jet patrolling Red Sea shot down apparently by ‘friendly fire’
