An American fighter plane was shot down over the Red Sea in an unusual “friendly fire” incident, according to reports from the US military. The US Central Command (CENTCOM) informed that both crew members of the US Navy F/A-18 Hornet ejected successfully, with one suffering minor injuries.
The pilots were discovered alive after ejecting from the aircraft. However, the bigger question is the attack, the shootdown highlights how dangerous the Red Sea passage has become, with persistent attacks on shipping by Iranian-backed Houthis despite US and European military coalitions patrolling the area.
The incident occurred after the US conducted a series of air attacks against a missile storage site and command facilities in Yemen’s capital, Sanaa, controlled by Iran-backed Houthi insurgents. US CENTCOM added that it had also hit multiple Houthi drones over the Red Sea.
The statement read, “The guided-missile cruiser USS Gettysburg, which is part of the USS Harry S Truman Carrier Strike Group, mistakenly fired on and hit the F/A-18, which was flying off the USS Harry S Truman.” Further added, this incident “was not the result of hostile fire, and a full investigation is underway.”
According to the military’s description, the aircraft shot down was a two-seat F/A-18 Super Hornet fighter jet assigned to the “Red Rippers” of Strike Fighter Squadron 11 at Naval Air Station Oceana, Virginia.
Houthi-controlled media reported strikes in Sanaa and the surrounding port city of Hodeida but provided no casualty or damage details. Strikes in Sanaa looked to be aimed specifically at a mountainside believed to have military installations. However, no photographs or details about the raids were provided, as has happened in the past when airstrikes targeted critical opposition facilities.
Brig. Gen. Yahya Saree, a Houthi military spokesman, issued a prepared statement hours later, claiming that the rebels used eight drones and 17 cruise missiles in their strike. He also claimed, without providing any evidence, that the Houthis shot down the F/A-18, which is likely part of his pattern of making inflated claims.
According to US military officials, the downed fighter jet was not part of the strikes in Yemen. The Houthis, who control Yemen’s most populous regions, say they won’t stop striking Israel and its allies until a ceasefire is reached in Gaza.
The F/A-18 incident also came the same day Houthi forces in Yemen said they fired a hypersonic ballistic missile at an Israeli military target in Tel Aviv’s Jaffa area. The missile fired from Yemen hit Tel Aviv overnight into Saturday, Israeli authorities said, in a rare instance of a failed interception over the city.
The Houthis claim to be acting in sympathy with Palestinians in Gaza, where Israel and Hamas have been at war since October 7, 2023, when the terror group launched a horrific offensive on Israel, killing 1,200 people and kidnapping 251, the majority of whom were civilians.