U.S. Navy jet crashes into San Diego Harbor; crew ejects safely

A U.S. Navy jet crashed into the waters of San Diego Harbor on Wednesday after its two aviators ejected, authorities said. They were rescued.

Emergency crews received reports about the incident shortly after 10 a.m. in the 1500 block of Shelter Island Drive. The San Diego Fire-Rescue Department confirmed that the aircraft splashed into the water. First responders arrived in less than 10 minutes, the department said.

As of Wednesday evening, the aircraft remained submerged in the water and a containment boom had been put in place to minimize the spread of fuel and debris, the Navy said.

Video footage on social media from shortly after the crash showed multiple rescue boats heading toward the area. The Navy confirmed that the aircraft was an E/A-18G Growler and that it had crashed while landing.

“Naval Base Coronado has stood up an Emergency Operations Center in response to the mishap, and assessment of the crash site is ongoing,” the Navy said in a statement.

The aircraft is part of the Electronic Attack Squadron VAQ 135, and the cause of the crash was under investigation. Security boats were on the scene along with environmental and safety teams set on minimizing the effects of the crash.

There were no reports of civilian injuries or any damage as of Wednesday evening, Navy officials said.

Justin Eaves said he heard the jet from his hotel near the shore, according to reporting from OnSceneTV.

“It went really low from what you could tell because it was super cloudy,” Eaves said. “It did a couple of maneuvers and you could hear it when it went over the motel. It was kind of quiet, but then it kicked up again and all of a sudden a few seconds later we just saw the plane go straight down into the water.”

The U.S. Coast Guard told San Diego news station KGTV that the aviators were in the water for only a minute before they were able to board a fishing boat. The two crew members were then transferred to a U.S. Customs and Border Protection boat and eventually taken to Hillcrest Medical Center at UC San Diego Health, where they were reported as stable.

The aircraft is believed to have crashed into the harbor between Point Loma and Naval Air Station North Island, less than three miles from San Diego.

The public should not touch, approach or try to collect any of the debris that may wash ashore, Navy officials said. Found debris should be reported to local authorities or Naval Base Coronado.