2 U.S. Navy pilots eject safely after fighter jet shot down over Red Sea by likely “friendly fire,” officials say

Two U.S. Navy pilots were shot down over the Red Sea in an apparent “friendly fire” incident, the U.S. military said Sunday. Both pilots were recovered alive, with one suffering minor injuries in the incident.

The incident came as the U.S. military conducted airstrikes targeting Yemen’s Iranian-backed Houthi rebels, though the U.S. military’s Central Command did not elaborate on what their mission was at the time.

“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,” Central Command said in a statement.

Earlier Saturday, CENTCOM reported that it had conducted precision airstrikes in Houthi-controlled territory in Sana’a, Yemen, against a missile storage facility and a command-and-control facility.

The strikes were conducted in response to the ongoing Houthi attacks on U.S. Navy warships and commercial vessels in the Southern Red Sea, the Gulf of Aden and the Bab al-Mandab Strait.

During the operation, CENTCOM forces also shot down several Houthi attack drones, as well as an anti-ship cruise missile over the Red Sea, the agency said. 

Early Saturday morning, a rocket fired from Yemen struck an area in Tel Aviv, injuring at least 16 people. The Houthis issued a statement on Telegram saying they had aimed a hypersonic ballistic missile at a military target, which they did not identify.