U.S. Central Command reportedly announced on Sunday that two U.S. Navy pilots were forced to eject from their jet fighter over the Red Sea after being caught in “an apparent case of friendly-fire.”
This occurred during a new round of attacks against the Houthi militant group in Yemen that took place overnight.
The two pilots were able to successfully exit their F/A-18 after it was struck by fire from the guided-missile cruiser USS Gettysburg, according to the military.
The jet fighter had taken off from the USS Harry S. Truman aircraft carrier, and both vessels are members of the same strike group.
According to the military, an investigation is currently underway, and one of the crew members sustained minor injuries.
The incident occurred shortly after U.S. Central Command announced that its forces had conducted airstrikes against a missile storage facility and a command and control facility operated by the Houthis in Yemen.
The connection between the friendly-fire incident and the U.S. attack on Houthi targets was not immediately apparent.
One of the most lethal friendly-fire incidents for U.S. forces in Afghanistan was the 2014 killing of five U.S. soldiers in southern Afghanistan.
In 2004, Army Cpl. Pat Tillman, a former professional football player who had transitioned to a military career, was fatally shot by his fellow soldiers during an operation in Afghanistan in one of the more high profile examples of friendly fire.
The Houthis, who are supported by Iran, maintain authority over a significant portion of northwestern Yemen.
In what the group describes as a campaign of support for Palestinian militants fighting Israel in Gaza, they have obstructed international commerce by attacking cargo ships that are passing through one of the world’s most critical trade routes.
The Houthis have also intensified their attacks on Israel in recent days, launching ballistic missiles into the country twice last week, including Tel Aviv.
Israel’s military has reported that the Houthis have launched more than 200 missiles and 170 drones at Israel since the commencement of the current conflict in Gaza.
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