A fighter pilot on a training mission ditched his jet in a wooded area of a suburban Washington neighborhood early Wednesday so that the plane would avoid crashing into a suburban Washington neighborhood, military officials said.
(FOX)- The F-16C, which military officials said was at least 30 years old and worth $20 million, went down about 200 yards behind a small subdivision of two-story brick homes in the middle-class suburban community of Clinton, about 3 miles southwest of Joint Base Andrews.
The pilot was treated for minor injuries and released from the hospital, Lt. Col. Michael Corker, the pilot’s commanding officer, said at a press conference.
The pilot, whose name was not released, is with the District of Columbia Air National Guard and was flying one of four fighter jets from Maryland to a shooting range in Pennsylvania for a training exercise when the crash happened.
A witness told Fox 5 DC/WTTG that he was sitting on his porch when he heard a loud explosion. He said the jet was on fire and he saw the pilot eject.
“It was the biggest fire ball I’ve ever seen in my life,” Patrick Dotson said.
He said he ran into the woods after the plane crashed and saw the pilot standing up. Dotson said the pilot asked if the neighborhood was OK because he had live rounds on board.