Two U.S. Navy pilots were shot down over the Red Sea on Sunday in what the military described as an apparent “friendly fire” incident, marking one of the most serious episodes involving American forces in over a year of operations targeting Yemen’s Houthi rebels.
The pilots, both of whom ejected from their aircraft, were recovered alive. One of them sustained minor injuries, according to the U.S. military. The incident highlights the heightened risks in the Red Sea, a crucial waterway increasingly fraught with tension due to attacks on commercial shipping by Iranian-backed Houthi forces. These attacks persist despite the presence of U.S. and European military coalitions patrolling the area.
At the time of the incident, U.S. forces were conducting airstrikes targeting Houthi positions in Yemen, though the U.S. Central Command declined to elaborate on the specific mission. Central Command did not immediately respond to additional questions from the Associated Press.
The aircraft, an F/A-18, had launched from the deck of the USS Harry S. Truman, an aircraft carrier stationed in the region, according to a statement from Central Command. The USS Harry S. Truman entered the Middle East on Dec. 15, though its exact location in the Red Sea had not been previously disclosed.
“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,” Central Command said in a statement.
The incident raises fresh concerns about the challenges of operating in a region where overlapping threats—from state-backed militias to miscalculations among allied forces—have escalated in recent months.
