Air Force recovers body of fighter jet pilot
A fighter jet pilot was killed when his F-16, similar to the one shown here, crashed into the Gulf of Mexico on Thursday. (Thinkstock)
The United State Air Force said it had recovered the body of an F-16 fighter jet pilot who was killed when his aircraft crashed in the Gulf of Mexico on Thursday during a routine training mission.
The aircraft, based out of Tyndall Air Force Base in the Florida Panhandle, was reported lost about 57 miles south of Panama City, according to the U.S. Coast Guard.
The name of the pilot was being withheld to allow for notification of his relatives.
“Efforts will now shift from that of a rescue mission to a recovery operation as evidence is collected to help in determining the cause of the crash,” the Air Force said in a statement from the base at Tyndall.
