Military Plane Crashes In Mississippi: Pilots Eject From Aircraft

LOWNDES COUNTY, MS — A U.S. Air Force plane crashed Wednesday morning near Columbus Air Force Base in eastern Mississippi and both pilots safely ejected out of the aircraft, officials said. The plane, an Air Force T-38C Talon II, crashed and burst into flames around 8:30 a.m., the Air Force said in a release.

Local law enforcement agencies and first responders are responding. The pilots were rushed to a local hospital to be evaluated, the Air Force said.

First responders have extinguished the fire and are securing the area. There were no homes or other buildings in the area.

Lowndes County's emergency management agency confirmed to Patch that a military plane went down. The agency said no one was killed and no one was hurt.

Further details weren't immediately available.

The Air Force describes the T-38 Talon as a "twin-engine, high-altitude, supersonic jet trainer" that's used in a variety of roles. The T-38C incorporates a "'glass cockpit,'" the site says, with integrated avionics displays, head-up display and an electronic "'no drop bomb'" scoring system.

"Air Education and Training Command is the primary user of the T-38 for joint specialized undergraduate pilot training," the agency says.

Lowndes County is about 94 miles west of Birmingham, Alabama. It has a population of about 59,000 people.

Breaking: A Columbus Air Force Base spokesman confirms an airplane has crashed. Lowndes CO SO says the plane crashed in northern Lowndes Co. It has not been confirmed whether this is a military or civilian aircraft. It's not confirmed whether there are injuries. More updates soon
— Joey Barnes (@JoeyBarnesTV) May 23, 2018

More information: Lowndes Co. EMA says the crash actually happened in Monroe Co.
Lowndes EMA Director Cindy Lawrence says the crew did eject safely, signaling this was a military aircraft that crashed. The site is very close to CAFB.
— Joey Barnes (@JoeyBarnesTV) May 23, 2018

A plane crash happened earlier this morning near the Columbus Air Force Base. We’re out here gathering more information. Multiple sources tell @WCBINEWS that pilots ejected safely. Keep following for the latest updates. pic.twitter.com/SiIyMwwTZt
— Jory Tally (@jorytallyWCBI) May 23, 2018

Photo credit: OVER LACKLAND AIR FORCE BASE, Texas -- A T-38 Talon participates in the 2004 Lackland Airfest. (U.S. Air Force photo by Master Sgt. Lance Cheung)