Two F-18 Fighter Jets Collide Mid-Air at Idaho, USA

An EA-18G Growler. Credit: U.S. Navy / Wikimedia Commons / Public Domain

Two U.S. Navy EA-18G Growler combatant jets collided successful mid-air implicit an Idaho aerial amusement connected Sunday, sending each 4 unit members ejecting to information earlier some aircraft crashed to the ground.

The incidental occurred astatine the Gunfighter Skies aerial amusement astatine Mountain Home Air Force Base, astir 2 miles northwest of the installation. It was the 2nd and last time of the event.

Witnesses watched arsenic the jets made interaction and appeared to concisely clasp unneurotic earlier separating. Sparks and debris scattered done the air. Four parachutes opened arsenic the unit ejected, and some craft fell and erupted successful dense achromatic fume upon impact.

Ruben Villalpando, who attended the amusement with his family, said the country did not consciousness existent astatine first. He recalled seeing a ample burst of occurrence sprout up from the ground, followed by heavy smoke. It was lone astatine that infinitesimal that helium realized some jets had gone down. His archetypal thought, helium said, was hoping the pilots had gotten retired successful time.

Officials corroborate each 4 aircrew harmless aft crash

An lawsuit announcer confirmed 4 palmy parachute deployments and asked the assemblage to stay successful place.

A U.S. Navy spokesperson said each 4 aircrew members ejected without contented and were being assessed by aesculapian personnel. Mountain Home Air Force Base aboriginal confirmed the unit was successful unchangeable information and thanked attendees for their practice during the exigency response.

A midair clang saw 2 combatant jets collide astatine an Idaho aerial amusement Sunday. All unit ejected safely. Officials are present investigating the cause. pic.twitter.com/Y3gsni9Yh7

— Tom Marvolo Riddle (@tom_riddle2025) May 18, 2026

Kim Sykes of Silver Wings of Idaho, 1 of the organising groups down the show, said nary 1 connected the crushed astatine the basal was injured.

A occurrence broke retired aft the crash, and the basal was placed nether a little lockdown. The remaining portions of the aerial amusement were cancelled. Emergency responders reached the country promptly.

Investigators probe wherefore combatant jets collided implicit Idaho

Investigators are present moving to find what caused the combatant jets to collide adjacent the Idaho base. Officials said the enquiry volition analyse whether a mechanical fault, a physiological issue, oregon pilot error was responsible.

The 2 jets were assigned to an physics onslaught squadron based successful Washington state. The EA-18G Growler, a carrier-based physics warfare variant of the two-seat F/A-18F Super Hornet, carries a portion outgo of astir $67 million.

Built by Boeing, the craft entered Navy work successful precocious 2009, replacing the older EA-6B Prowler. Its physics warfare systems are developed by Northrop Grumman.

The Gunfighter Skies aerial amusement had not been held since 2018, erstwhile a glider aviator was killed successful a abstracted mishap during the event.