US Navy fighter and helicopter crash in South China Sea

A US Navy F/A-18F Super Hornet fighter jet and an MH-60R Seahawk helicopter crashed within 30 minutes of each other during separate routine operations over the South China Sea on October 26, CNN reports, citing the Navy’s Pacific Fleet. All crew members were safely rescued.

According to the Navy, the Seahawk went down around 2:45 p.m. local time while conducting routine operations from the aircraft carrier USS Nimitz. Search-and-rescue teams promptly recovered all three crew members. Roughly half an hour later, an F/A-18F Super Hornet attached to the same carrier also crashed during flight operations. Both pilots ejected safely and were rescued shortly after.

An investigation has been launched to determine the cause of the incidents, which occurred over one of the world’s most strategically sensitive waterways.

The South China Sea—bracketed by China and several Southeast Asian nations—is a major global shipping route, claimed in parts by multiple countries. Beijing, however, asserts control over nearly the entire area, defying an international tribunal ruling. Over the past two decades, China has bolstered its claims by building military facilities on contested islands and reefs, prompting the United States to maintain a steady military presence in defence of freedom of navigation and trade.

The twin crashes coincided with US President Donald Trump’s diplomatic tour of Asia, during which he is expected to meet Chinese leader Xi Jinping for talks focused on trade. The meeting comes amid renewed tensions between Washington and Beijing, though US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said on Sunday that the two nations had reached a “framework trade agreement,” easing frictions ahead of the talks.

The Navy has lost at least four of its $60 million Super Hornet jets this year, including two in the Red Sea earlier this spring and another off the coast of Virginia during a training exercise in August.

The USS Nimitz, one of the world’s largest and oldest aircraft carriers, is expected to be retired next year after more than four decades of service.

By Vugar Khalilov