The State : 2 Jets Collide; Navy Pilot Dies

Two Navy F-18 jet fighters on a training mission collided over a mountain pass in Central California, killing the pilot of one aircraft, but the pilot of the second plane survived, Navy officials said. Lt. David J. Morgan, 25, of Lockport, N.Y., suffered “minor injuries” after ejecting from his plane, said Dennis McGrath, a spokesman for Lemoore Naval Air Station, where the planes and their pilots were stationed. McGrath identified the dead pilot as Lt. Cmdr. Eric A. Hitchcock, 35, of Wadmalaw Island, S.C. Both pilots were members of Strike Fighter Squadron 161 at the air station near Fresno. The two jets collided about 15 miles southeast of Independence in Inyo County.