A US Navy pilot whose jet was mistakenly shot down by an American warship over the Red Sea told investigators he saw his life flash before his eyes before ejecting from the doomed aircraft.

The command investigation into the late December 2024 friendly fire incident, which Business Insider reviewed prior to its release on Thursday, reveals that the warship's crew mistook two Navy F/A-18 Super Hornet fighter jets for anti-ship cruise missiles fired by Houthi rebels in Yemen.

In a catastrophic failure, the cruiser USS Gettysburg launched surface-to-air missiles at both F/A-18s, shooting down one and nearly hitting the second. It also targeted a third friendly aircraft but never pulled the trigger.

The Gettysburg and the other warships in the strike group led by the aircraft carrier USS Harry S. Truman deployed in September 2024 and entered the Red Sea three months later to take over Navy combat operations against the Iran-backed Houthis, who had for almost a year at that point been attacking key shipping lanes.

Early on December 22, just seven days after entering the Red Sea, the Gettysburg accidentally shot down a Super Hornet from the Truman's air wing in what the US military described as "an apparent case of friendly fire." Both aviators, the pilot and the weapons officer, ejected safely from the roughly $60 million fighter, part of Strike Fighter Squadron 11 (VFA-11), the "Red Rippers."

The command investigation reveals that the friendly fire incident nearly resulted in a much larger disaster. While initial reports centered on the aircraft that was struck, the investigation reveals that a second narrowly avoided a catastrophic end, and a third was in the crosshairs.

As the first surface-to-air missile raced upward from the Gettyburg's missile tubes, the pilot and weapons officer of the first jet assumed the weapon was chasing after a Houthi drone they hadn't found, the investigation said.

They watched the missile climb and then suddenly change course. As the weapon rushed toward them, the pilot suddenly saw his life flash before his eyes, he told investigators. Seeing no other choice, the two-man team ejected just before the missile struck the plane.

In that chaotic moment, the Gettysburg fired another missile at a second American fighter jet. The aviators on board issued multiple mayday calls but opted to outmaneuver it rather than bail. The missile gave chase, course correcting in pursuit of the jet.

It narrowly missed, the jet shaking as it passed just a few feet away before burning out and exploding in the water.

A Navy helicopter commander who witnessed the incident told investigators his crew "saw the missile overhead and saw it flash." They said there was no warning before the shot was taken.

As for what caused this disaster, the command investigation pointed to a series of failures, from shortcomings in the planning process to deficiencies in the Gettysburg’s combat systems, and noted that crew fatigue may have played a role.

https://www.businessinsider.com/navy-warshi...issiles-2025-12

most probably shot down by the houthis, 'friendly fire' political correctness news to jaga malu

heads are going roll in the navy

this is a big fucked up

Maybe the fighter jet is doing secret ops and turn off their IFF Transponder

The navy ship thinking them as hostile and open fire

Maverick was piloting the second super hornet

houthis got so advanced anti aircraft missile?

what weed you smoking

kena hacked by houthis maybe or just shoot down by AK47 nak jaga malu

DEI hire

Friendly fire

good missile advert. Confirm can kill F/A-18 Super Hornet.

amdk alsways have some sense of humor.lol

luckily it US. If CCP, the page going up fast

Kesian

US has fallen

The 2nd aircraft pilots have balls of steel. Out running a fucking heat seeking missile.

lucky not another civilian aircraft like what happened to Iran Air

baru 1 missile dah life flash before his eyes. palestinians get bombed hundreds of times already.

houthi using iranian missiles not so advanced also can shoot down US jets
not the first time thou, in operation desert storm many US jets been shot down by soviet export relic
and the western news often reported the 'crashes' as 'pilot error and 'technical difficulties'
to cover up their invincible top gun image and the jets manufacturer export sales

Maverick

kesian the pilots


A pilot's career is not automatically over after an ejection, but the chances of retirement increase due to the high risk of injury, especially to the spine. While many pilots are medically cleared and return to flying, frequent ejections, especially from older seats, can lead to cumulative spinal damage, and a pilot's military service may be terminated due to injuries.

Risks and medical evaluation
Spinal injury: The forces of ejection can cause compression injuries to the spine, sometimes leading to a permanent loss of height. Rates for significant back injury after an ejection are high.

Other injuries: Pilots can also sustain other injuries to their arms, legs, and neck from the process.
Medical clearance: After an ejection, a pilot undergoes an immediate medical evaluation. If they are found to be healthy and cleared for flight, they can return to duty.

Factors affecting return to flying
Seat design: Modern ejection seats are designed to smooth out the acceleration curve and are generally safer than older seats, which could be more brutal.

Ejection parameters: The success of an ejection and the degree of injury can depend on factors like ejection speed, the aircraft's position, and whether the ejection was "textbook" or occurred on the edge of the operational envelope.

Number of ejections: While there is no official limit in some air forces, some pilots may have to retire after ejecting multiple times due to cumulative injuries, with some sources suggesting that the third ejection can be a significant factor, according to Quora users.

The same Palestinians who were dancing in joy on 7th Oct 2023, when innocent folks were getting massacred?

C'mon la... dont tell me that super hornet doesn't have IFF or that uss Gettysbury guided cruise missiles doesnt have IFF radar..... that ship shot down one and nearly hit another super hornet....

Maybe houthi has some jammer that jammed the ship radar..

The decision to shoot was 'wrong'
As for what caused this disaster, the command investigation pointed to a series of failures, from shortcomings in the planning process to deficiencies in the Gettysburg’s combat systems, and noted that crew fatigue may have played a role.

US Navy F/A-18 Super Hornets, assigned to the Harry S. Truman Carrier Strike Group, fly a mission over the US Central Command area of responsibility, April 8, 2025.
One F/A-18 was shot down, and another one barely survived during the friendly fire incident. US Air Force photo by Staff Sgt. Jackson Manske
Early in the deployment, the investigation said, the Navy identified “significant degradation” in the Gettysburg’s core interoperability system. Problems spanned network management, surveillance and tracking reporting, identification, mutual tracking, mission engagement, and weapons coordination.

During the first three months of the deployment, the Gettysburg and Truman were often separated. The cruiser had been fending off Houthi missiles and drones shortly before the friendly fire incident, and there appeared to be some confusion over whether the threat had concluded.

That said, the investigation assessed "the decisions to shoot were wrong when measured across the totality of information available" to Gettysburg's commanding officer, who was constrained by a series of previous actions and decisions both in and beyond his control.

The captain had low situational awareness, and his combat information center team was unable to help him regain it, the investigation said.

This shootdown incident wasn't the Red Sea battle's only friendly fire incident, though it was the most serious. Earlier in the Red Sea conflict, in February 2024, a German warship accidentally targeted a US MQ-9 Reaper drone, but the missiles never reached it because the warship's radar system suffered a technical malfunction.

The December 2024 friendly fire incident was one of four major mishaps that the Truman strike group experienced during its monthslong deployment in the Middle East.

The aircraft carrier collided with a cargo vessel in February and also lost two more F/A-18s to accidents — one fell off the side of the warship along with a tow tractor in April, and another experienced a failure while landing and slid off the flight deck in May.

In a statement Thursday, Vice Chief of Naval Operations Adm. Jim Kilby said that "the Navy is committed to being a learning organization," adding that "these investigations reinforce the need to continue investing in our people to ensure we deliver battle-ready forces to operational commanders."

the innocent european genocidal maniacs that have been oppressing the local indigenous population for decades?

can you back up your claim with facts and source

Are they really that bored

secret mission stay low and shoot down by houthis

They were oppressing a terror outfit & its enablers & supporters.

https://www.csmonitor.com/USA/Military/2011...potential-costs

Equipment malfunction they said lol

Terrorists or freedom fighters?

It depends on which side you are standing

Hamas has, is & will keep killing fellow Palestinians, steal their aid supplies & use them as cannon fodder. That sure is a very convoluted definition of freedom fighters.

WUMAO again. messing with the radar.

kekwak

software code logic flaw is common problem of redneck programmers but they try to blame on indians

Fuiyoh wumao so good until can go all the way to red sea

If it’s shot down there will be clear evidence like shrapnel damage

usa still dare laugh china aircraft carrier

the jet already cut in half by missile, same like bharatland rafale

Must be mabuk while on duty.

you dont know wumao tech.

Look like CCP but Not CCP?

its their obvious pattern.

You dont know only.

AMDKs and their imagination even more outstanding 😁

clear old f18 stock so can order new?

great balls of faiyaaa



This post has been edited by Knnbuccb: Dec 5 2025, 06:34 PM

as like your imagination in nameless one 1973 yoda sword

It’s way cheaper to mistakenly shoot down f18 jet than to lose the Cruiser or Aircraft Carrier to Houthi missile attack


F18 is old jet and will be replaced with F35

This post has been edited by Raddus: Dec 5 2025, 06:37 PM

must be using Huawei technology ... oh waittt

start spamming shit ccpee threads again never learnt from attack b4

You Pjng?

you know; you typed here is all english not chinese? AMDK powerrr imagination

Not much different from that imaginary date called 18 Jan anyway

In their world, only xjp is their savior

Wow looks like Yemeni houthis have acquired some cutting edge spoofing technology. Probably from the same place they got their hypersonics.

This post has been edited by Penamer: Dec 6 2025, 09:46 AM

Hi Pjng 😁

usa pulled a bharat and just as bharat did as expected blame personnel mistake rather than equipment failure



This post has been edited by unnamed: Dec 6 2025, 11:14 AM

what terrorists? you mean the freedom fighters who are fighting to liberate their own land from oppressive colonialists?
how can a people that have been displaced from their homeland by foreign forces be considered terrorists?

Same like "bad fuel". lol

Guaranteed the official reasons are NOT the actual cause of incident.

This post has been edited by ZeaXG: Yesterday, 11:42 AM

I am talking about the cowards masquerading as freedom fighters referenced in post # 30. Gazans are really unfortunate to hav such cretins fighting for them.