Investigation Continues, Identity of Pilot To Be Released When Appropriate.
The U.S. Navy has confirmed that the pilot of a Boeing F/A-18E Super Hornet that crashed at approximately 9:50 AM local time on Wednesday, July 31, 2019 in the Rainbow Canyon low flying training area, often referred to as Star Wars Canyon, did not survive the accident.
An official statement released today, August 1, 2019, says, “The Navy has confirmed that the pilot of the F/A-18E Super Hornet that crashed July 31st died in the crash. In accordance with Department of Defense policy, the identity of the pilot will be withheld until 24 hours following notification of next of kin. The Navy mourns the loss of one of our own and our hearts go out to the family and friends affected by this tragedy.
The pilot, a member of Strike Fighter Squadron One Five One (VFA-151) nicknamed the Vigilantes from NAS Lemoore, died Wednesday when his aircraft impacted the side of the canyon wall between the Father Crowley Point parking lot and The Vista in Star Wars Canyon.
Here are a few shots from yesterday – I stopped by the scene of the #USNavy F/A-18 crash in Death Valley. I was on my way to Rainbow Canyon for the first time when I heard of the crash. I got there 5 hours after the crash. I’ll post more photos and video soon pic.twitter.com/lNXzXubCsM
— Eric Rosenwald (@rosenwald_eric) August 1, 2019
Here’s a video showing the crash site.
The cause of the crash remains under investigation.
