A US Navy plane with three people onboard crashed in waters near the eastern shore boundary of Virginia and Maryland on Wednesday evening, killing one person. Two others were injured.
Lieutenant commander Rob Myers, a public affairs officer with the Naval Air Force Atlantic, said the plane, US Navy E2-D Hawkeye, was conducting routine operations in the vicinity of Wallops Island, Virginia, when it crashed about 150 miles southeast of Washington, DC.
The plane, an advanced tactical airborne early warning aircraft, is based out of Naval Station Norfolk. It is assigned to an East Coast Airborne Command and Control Squadron.
A volunteer fire department in Stockton responded to a call around 7.30pm, according to Ryan Whittington, a spokesperson for Maryland’s Ocean City Fire Department.
“One person was stuck in the plane, ″ Mr Whittington said.
The Navy’s statement said the deceased crew member was found dead in the aircraft and divers from the fire department in Worcester County helped recover the body.
Maryland state police rescued the other two crew members, and they were subsequently transported to Wallops Island to receive treatment for injuries that were not life-threatening. They had broken legs, officials said.
The identities of the three people aboard the plane have not yet been released.
A spokesperson for the US Coast Guard said after crashing near Chincoteague, the aircraft became partially submerged in water, reported WRIC.
Virginia governor Glenn Youngkin’s office said the situation is being monitored.
Several US Navy aircraft have been involved in crashes since the beginning of this year.In February, four people died after a helicopter operated by a military contractor crashed during a training mission at a US Naval Facility in Hawaii.
Additional reporting by agencies
