Trona, California — A fighter jet belonging to the Air Force’s Thunderbirds demonstration squadron crashed in the Southern California desert on Wednesday, but the pilot was able to eject safely, the Army said.
The pilot was being treated for non-life-threatening injuries at a hospital, according to the San Bernardino County Fire Department.
The F-16C Fighting Falcon crashed around 10:45 a.m. during a training mission “over controlled airspace in California,” according to a statement from Nellis Air Force Base in Nevada.
The fire department said it responded to an “aircraft emergency” near Trona, a separate community in the Mojave Desert about 180 miles (290 kilometers) north of Los Angeles.
In 2022, a Navy F/A-18E Super Hornet crashed near Trona, killing the pilot.
Wednesday’s incident is under investigation and more information will be released from the 57th Wing Public Affairs Office, an Air Force statement said.
Like the Navy’s Blue Angels, the Air Force’s Thunderbirds perform their famous tight formations at air shows, practicing flying within inches of each other. The Air Force’s brief statement did not provide details about the circumstances of the accident.
The Blue Angels and Thunderbirds have been involved in dozens of crashes in their long history.
Formed in 1953, the Thunderbirds train seasonally out of Nellis Air Force Base near Las Vegas. Aircraft stationed there include F-16 Falcon and F-22 Raptor fighter jets, as well as A-10 Warthog ground attack aircraft.