SAN DIEGO _ One pilot ejected safely after a Wednesday morning midair collision between two jets over water near Miramar Marine Corps Air Station, while the second aviator was able to land safely, Marine officials said.
Search and rescue teams received a mayday call at 12:11 p.m. PST and sailors from the aircraft carrier Carl Vinson recovered the unnamed Marine pilot 30 minutes later, according to a Marine Corps news release.
The Marines said that the pair of single-seat F/A-18 Hornets assigned to the 3rd Marine Aircraft Wing struck each other during a training mission near San Diego.
The second unnamed pilot landed safely at the North Island Naval Air Station in Coronado.
Both pilots are in stable condition and are in an undisclosed medical facility.
The cause of the crash is under investigation.
The Wednesday accident follows a string of recent mishaps involving the F-18 fighters.
On Oct. 25, an F-18C Hornet crashed and burned at the end of a routine training flight at the Marine Corps Air Ground Combat Center at 29 Palms, Calif. The pilot ejected safely.
A Blue Angels F/A-18C jet crashed near Smyrna, Tenn., on June 2, killing its aviator Marine Capt. Jeff Kuss, 32. Authorities later blamed the accident on pilot error.
Two F/A-18 Super Hornets collided off the Atlantic Coast on May 26 near Naval Air Station Oceana. Both pilots were rescued.
