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Tuesday, March 19, 2024

UPDATE: Wrightsville Beach Ocean Rescue first to reach Marine Corps pilot in ‘heroic rescue’

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Two Wrightsville Beach Ocean Rescue team members were part of a rescue of a U.S. military jet crash off of Wrightsville Beach on Friday afternoon.

Capts. Jeremy Owens and Kyle Miess launched an ocean rescue jet ski into the surf and were the first to reach the pilot, who had ejected from the AV-8B Harrier shortly before it crashed around 5 p.m.

“Miess actually dove into the cold water to stabilize the pilot’s flotation, assess his need for medical attention and secure him to the jet ski,” said Wrightsville Beach Fire Chief Glen Rogers in an email. “Purely heroic rescue!”

Rogers said the pilot was okay, but it could have been different if not for the quick reaction of the firefighters.

“This Ocean Rescue team had no idea exactly what they were responding to or what the injuries would be,” Rogers said.

A U.S. Marine Corps spokeswoman said that an AV-8B Harrier from the Marine Corps Air Station Cherry Point crashed off of the North Carolina coast on Friday afternoon at approximately 5:05 p.m.  A Coast Guard rescue helicopter from Station Wrightsville Beach retrieved the pilot, the spokeswoman said, but his condition was not known.

Witnesses saw the plane crash from the beach, observing an eye-catching splash, followed  by a quick response from the military and from local police. The pilot ejected from the plane.

“It was almost like a geyser,” said Brooke Hefele, visiting from New York City, who was on the beach near the Holiday Inn and beach access no. 8. “At first, I thought it was a boat crash.”

Hefele said she was impressed at the speed at which rescue crews arrived. Planes circled the crash spot while a helicopter retrieved the pilot, she said.

The jet was part of the Marine Attack Squadron 542, Marine Aircraft Group 14. The cause of the crash is still under investigation

Wrightsville Beach police secured a spot on the beach by access no. 8 where the crash was first reported. The New Hanover County Sheriff’s Office sent a boat to the scene, mainly to help secure debris from the wreckage. Lt. Jerry Brewer of the sheriff’s office said that the U.S. Coast Guard would monitor the debris until the military finished its cleanup. The debris was unlikely to wash ashore as the tide was heading out, Brewer said.

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