4 crew members eject safely after two Navy jets crash during air show in Idaho

BOISE, Idaho, May 18, (AP): All four crew members ejected safely after two Navy jets collided and crashed Sunday during an air show at the Mountain Home Air Force Base in western Idaho, officials said. The collision involved two US Navy EA18-G Growlers from the Electronic Attack Squadron 129 in Whidbey Island, Washington, said Cmdr. Amelia Umayam, spokesperson for Naval Air Forces, US Pacific Fleet.

The aircraft were performing an aerial demonstration when the crash occurred, Umayam said in a statement. The four crew members from both jets safely ejected and the crash was under investigation, she said. The crew members were in stable condition, base officials said. Nobody at the military base was hurt, said Kim Sykes, marketing director with Silver Wings of Idaho, which helped to plan the air show.

"Everyone is safe and I think that’s the most important thing,” Sykes said. The base said in a social media post that it was locked down immediately following the crash. The remainder of the air show was canceled. Videos posted online by spectators showed four parachutes opening in the sky as the aircraft plummet to the ground near the base about 50 miles (80 kilometers) south of Boise.

The EA-18G Growler is a variant of the F/A-18 Super Hornet fighter jet with sophisticated electronic warfare systems. Shane Ogden said he was filming the two jets as they came close together. A video he captured shows the two aircraft appear to make contact and then spin in tandem as the crew members eject and their parachutes open.

The planes then fall together, exploding into a fireball upon impact as the crew members drift to the ground nearby. "I was just filming thinking they were going to split apart and that happened and I filmed the rest,” Ogden said in a text message. He said he left soon after the crash because he did not want to get in the way of emergency responders.

Organizers said the popular air show that includes flying demonstrations and parachute jumps is a celebration of aviation history and a look at modern military capabilities. The US Air Force Thunderbirds demonstration squadron headlined the show both days. The National Weather Service reported good visibility and winds gusting up to 29 mph (47 kph) around the time of the crash.

It was remarkable both crews were able to eject from their planes, and aviation safety expert Jeff Guzzetti said that may have been possible because of the way the planes collided and appeared to remain stuck together in midair before falling to Earth. Crews usually don't have a chance to eject in a midair collision, he said.