Hawker Hunter MK58 has crashed near a naval base in southern California, killing the pilot. It was believed to have crashed around 5:15 p.m. on Wednesday near the Naval Station Ventura County, as evidenced by a high plume of black smoke.
The Captain of the fire department of Ventura County, Mike Lindbery, has already confirmed that the pilot was killed instantly. Nobody on the ground was hurt when the Hawker Hunter MK58, a single-seat fighter-ground attack plane, crashed on the field. "Fortunately, nobody was in that portion of the field," Lindbery stated.
Allan Kenitzer, the spokesperson for the Federal Aviation Administration, has stated that the FAA and the National Transportation Safety Board have already looked into the incident and that an investigation is already underway.
In May of 2012 a Hawker Hunter MK58 also crashed into a farm that was near the navy base, also killing the pilot. In that instance, the 57-year-old Thomas Bennett was piloting the jet, which was privately owned. The plane was hired to play the role of the enemy in training exercises.
It was actually a civilian fighter jet that was contracted by the Navy to be part of an offshore training exercise. It was already done with its participation as the enemy aircraft and was preparing to land when it went down across the street in a field that was quite near the Pacific Coast Highway, according to Kimberly Gearhart, the spokesperson of the base.
In the same month in 2011, three members who were on a Boeing 707 tanker, which was loaded with jet fuel, were able to escape with only minor injuries after the plane skidded off the runway as it exploded into flames while attempting to take off from the base.
The plane was only carrying civilians, of whom only three got mild injuries.
The Hawker Hunter MK58 planes were first built back in the 50s and were previously used by the British Air Force and India.
This article is copyrighted by Travelers Today, the travel news leader
