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| Version 1 | Version 2 |
|---|---|
| RAF Lakenheath: US fighter jet crashes into North Sea | RAF Lakenheath: US fighter jet crashes into North Sea |
| (32 minutes later) | |
| A US Air Force pilot is missing after a fighter jet crashed into the North Sea. | A US Air Force pilot is missing after a fighter jet crashed into the North Sea. |
| The F-15C Eagle, from the 48th Fighter Wing at RAF Lakenheath in Suffolk, crashed shortly after 09:40 BST while on a training mission. | |
| The cause of the crash is currently unknown but the US Air Force confirmed only one pilot was on board. | The cause of the crash is currently unknown but the US Air Force confirmed only one pilot was on board. |
| Search and rescue teams are looking for the aircraft, which is believed to have crashed 74 nautical miles off the East Yorkshire coast. | |
| A spokeswoman for HM Coastguard said: "The HM Coastguard helicopter from Humberside has been sent along with Bridlington and Scarborough RNLI lifeboats. | A spokeswoman for HM Coastguard said: "The HM Coastguard helicopter from Humberside has been sent along with Bridlington and Scarborough RNLI lifeboats. |
| "Following a Mayday broadcast by HM Coastguard, other vessels nearby are heading to the area." | "Following a Mayday broadcast by HM Coastguard, other vessels nearby are heading to the area." |
| The F15C, a single-seater air defence fighter, is a model of jet that has been used by the US Air Force since 1979. | |
| RAF spokesman Martin Tinworth said the aircraft has an "exceptional flight safety record". | |
| RAF Lakenheath is the largest US Air Force-operated base in England and home to its only F-15 fighter wing in Europe. | |
| More than 4,000 US service men and women are stationed there. | |
| Lakenheath had been solely used by the RAF during World War Two and was abandoned as an operational base at the end of the war. |