[T.B. Yoits]

David Cenciotti of The Aviationist needs to revise the title of his article. The pilot would have safely ejected before the F-18 A/D crashed.

[Red Badger]

Aviation ping!......................

[T.B. Yoits]

It will be interesting to see the comparisons between this crash and the previous one from October 2024 where two Navy pilots died in an EA-18G Growler crash near Mt. Rainier in Washington.

https://boltflight.com/f-18-crash-in-washington-tragedy-strikes-the-u-s-navy/

[suthener]

These days you have to go to a relatively obscure source to get a comprehensive, true journalistic opening paragraph and a non-spam covered video.

“On Jun. 13, 2026, at approximately 12.00 PDT an F/A-18D Hornet aircraft assigned to Marine Aircraft Group 11, 3rd Marine Aircraft Wing, crashed approximately 55 miles southeast of Seattle, while conducting a routine training mission”

Simple who, what, when, and where.

[jerod]

I guess one can only assume that all these F-18 crashes of late are due to the age of these fighters?

Some have been kicking around for 40 plus years.

[OA5599]

The D model is a two seater. Wonder if there was a WSO in the rear seat who did not eject safely like the pilot.

[Uncle Miltie]

I’ve been hiking that area and seen the pilots tree skimming below me through the pass.