An F-16 fighter jet crashed Wednesday morning near Maryland’s Joint Base Andrews outside Washington, D.C., according to authorities.
The fighter jet was assigned to the 113th Wing at Andrews and crashed shortly after 9 a.m. approximately six miles southwest of the base, DC Air National Guard said in a statement.
The jet’s lone pilot “ejected and sustained non-life threatening injuries,” according to the Air National Guard, which said the jet was taking part in a routine training mission in the Washington area.
{mosads}Mark Brady, a spokesman for the Prince George’s County Fire Department in Maryland, confirmed Wednesday that the pilot had parachuted out of the vehicle.
Brady told WTOP News that the plane went down in an unpopulated area and that emergency crews are keeping a safe distance due to the potential for hazardous materials.
“This is the wing that flies protected missions over D.C. all the time,” he said of the 113th Wing. “There’s always a fighter jet on call and ready to move very quickly toward any attack against the D.C. area.”
NBC News reported Wednesday that the pilot ejected close to National Harbor and is believed to be safe while his injuries are being assessed.
“I just heard a loud boom, I guess,” eyewitness Kent Roberson said of the incident. “[It was] like how a large tree falls and shakes the ground.”
House Minority Whip Steny Hoyer (D-Md.) tweeted Wednesday that he was monitoring the situation, adding that he was “relieved the pilot is safe.”