A Navy trainer aircraft crashed into a Lake Worth neighborhood during a landing approach in September 2021, after a bird strike, according to military documents and a cockpit video. A 4.5-pound black vulture was ingested into the jet’s single engine as it descended toward a runway at Naval Air Station Joint Reserve Base Fort Worth. Within 30 seconds, the jet plummeted into backyards and burst into flames, injuring at least three residents. A military instructor and a student pilot, who were on a training flight from Corpus Christi, ejected just seconds before impact and suffered injuries. The accident caused nearly $47 million in damage, including medical costs and the destruction of the plane, according to the report.
