Rescuers have found the wreckage of a US Air Force fighter jet that crashed into the North Sea but the pilot remains missing, officials say.
The F-15C Eagle from the 48th Fighter Wing was on a routine training mission from RAF Lakenheath when it crashed at 9.40am on Monday.
The cause of the crash wasn’t immediately clear.
Britain’s coast guard located wreckage from the downed fighter, and recovery efforts were underway, the US Air Force said in a statement.
“The pilot is still missing, and search and rescue efforts continue,” the statement said.
Coast guard officials said in a statement that they received reports the plane went down about 137km off Flamborough Head on the Yorkshire coast.
A helicopter and lifeboats have been deployed.
“Other vessels nearby are heading to the area,” the coast guard said in a statement.
Lakenheath is a Royal Air Force base that hosts the US Air Force’s 48th Fighter Wing, known as the Liberty Wing. The base is about 130km northeast of London.
The wing has more than 4500 active-duty military members.
