A Navy fighter jet was lost in the Red Sea on Monday after going overboard during an apparent mishap aboard the USS Harry S. Truman, Navy officials said.
One sailor sustained minor injuries, officials said.
The incident comes amid the ongoing U.S. military campaign against the Iran-backed Houthi rebels in Yemen, in which the aircraft carrier and its support ships are playing a central role.
As the Truman was operating in the Red Sea, officials said that an F/A-18E Super Hornet was being towed in the ship’s hangar bay. The crew then lost control of that aircraft, the Navy said in a statement.
“The aircraft and tow tractor were lost overboard,” the statement said. “Sailors towing the aircraft took immediate action to move clear of the aircraft before it fell overboard. An investigation is underway.”
Officials stressed that the carrier and its embarked air wing “remain fully mission capable.”
U.S. Central Command, which oversees American military operations in the Middle East, said late Sunday that it has hit over 800 Houthi targets in Yemen over just the past six weeks.
Over the past 18 months, the Houthis have regularly targeted commercial and military ships in the Red Sea with anti-ship missiles and drones.
