A pilot was killed after an F-18 fighter jet crashed Wednesday having taking off from a U.S. military base in England, officials told NBC News.
The plane came down after leaving from RAF Lakenheath, around 70 miles northeast of London, according to Senior Airman Amanda Sampson, a spokeswoman at the base.
A spokeswoman from Cambridgeshire Police confirmed to NBC News that the pilot was killed. No one else was believed to be on the plane at the time and there was no one on the ground, the spokeswoman said.
The aircraft came down near in farmland near Ely, around 10 miles from the base. Emergency services were at the scene.
“Details are sketchy at this stage,” Cambridgeshire Police said in an earlier emailed statement to NBC News.
RAF Lakenheath is the largest U.S. Air Force-operated base in England.
Alexander Smith