Pair Had Been Fleeing Police When The Accident Occurred

Two people were fatally injured when the Jeep they were driving crashed into a fighter jet at Naval Air Station Lemoore in California Thursday.

The Visalia Times-Delta reports that a man and a woman were fleeing police when they entered through an entry control point on the base, though it is not clear how they managed to make it passed the armed Navy security at the entrance.

The Jeep reportedly made it several miles onto the base before colliding with a parked fighter jet. The woman passenger in the Jeep died at the scene. The driver was airlifted to a hospital, where he died of his injuries.

Cmdr. Monty Ashliman, the commanding officer of NAS Lemoore, said during a news briefing that that security protocols will be reviewed in light of the incident. He did not say how much damage had been caused to the aircraft.

The chase began when a California Highway Patrol Officer approached the pair who had stopped on the side of the road. CHP Lt. Dave Knoff said it was not clear why they fled the police.

Ashliman said the airplane would be thoroughly inspected before it was allowed to fly again.

FMI: www.navy.mil