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.
The carrier group arrived in the Red Sea this past week, where it is part of Operation Prosperity Guardian.
The Hornet’s two-person crew ejected from the aircraft, Centcom said, with one sustaining minor injuries. An investigation is underway.
Houthi militia claimed it shot down the fighter jet with missiles and drones, according to Yemen news service Saba. The incident comes after reports that the militia were planning to offer seminars on Red Sea security.
The Houthi campaign has led major container carriers to detour Asia services away from the Red Sea/Suez Canal and on longer voyages around the Horn of Africa. This has pushed up shipping rates for services from Asia to the Mediterranean, Europe and the United States.
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