US loses F/A-18 from USS Truman in Red Sea in suspicious incident

By Al Mayadeen English
Source: News websites
28 Apr 2025 23:08

A US Navy F/A-18 Super Hornet and tow tractor fell from the USS Harry Truman into the Red Sea, leaving one sailor injured, prompting an investigation.

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Aircraft carrier USS Harry S. Truman is moored near Split, Croatia, February 14, 2022. (AP)

An F/A-18 Super Hornet Red Sea incident occurred when the US Navy lost both a fighter jet and a tow tractor from the USS Harry Truman aircraft carrier, currently stationed in the region for relentlessly bombing Yemen, resulting in a minor injury to one sailor, the US Navy confirmed on Monday.

According to a press release, "USS Harry S. Truman lost an F/A-18E Super Hornet assigned to Strike Fighter Squadron 136 and a tow tractor as the aircraft carrier operated in the Red Sea, April 28. All personnel are accounted for, with one sailor sustaining a minor injury."

The fighter jet reportedly fell overboard after the move crew lost control while towing the aircraft within the hangar of the carrier.

The US Navy added that a formal investigation has been launched to determine the exact circumstances leading to the incident.

This comes after the Yemeni armed forces announced that they targeted the USS Truman aircraft carrier and a vital Israeli site in Askalan, as announced by YAF spokesperson Yahya Saree.

Given the current escalation and previous attacks on the USS Harry Truman, the incident raises questions about the official narrative. Some analysts suggest the F/A-18 Super Hornet may have been lost due to combat-related factors, possibly resulting from a Yemeni shootdown, rather than a simple towing accident.

This incident follows another recent event in February, when the Truman Strike Group was involved in a collision with a merchant vessel near Egypt, causing damage to the carrier above the waterline.

USS Harry Truman: A target for Yemen

The Yemeni Armed Forces have been engaging the massive US warship for the past year after declaring Yemen a support front for Gaza.

Since then, Yemen has been targeted with hundreds of airstrikes and ceaseless aggression, alarmingly targeting its civilian population. In response, the Ansar Allah resistance movement has successfully targeted the vessel and its supporting group.

In their latest operation, the YAF's naval, drone, and missile units targeted the Truman carrier in coordinated strikes using a combination of ballistic and cruise missiles, in addition to several UAVs, resulting in its withdrawal from the area.