LAKENHEATH, England — Officials have identified the pilot who died when a U.S. Air Force jet with the 48th Fighter Wing crashed off the English coast Monday.
According to the BBC, U.S. Air Force 1st Lt. Kenneth Allen, assistant chief of weapons and tactics for the 493rd Fighter Squadron, was participating in a routine training mission Monday when the F-15C Eagle he was flying crashed into the North Sea, officials said in a news release early Tuesday. Allen, who had been stationed at Royal Air Force Lakenheath in England since February, was found dead.
"We are deeply saddened by the loss of Lt. Allen, and mourn with his family and his fellow Reapers in the 493rd Fighter Squadron," Col. Will Marshall, 48th Fighter Wing commander, said in a statement. "The tremendous outpouring of love and support from our communities has been a ray of light in this time of darkness."