{"id":2528643,"date":"2026-06-23T15:56:15","date_gmt":"2026-06-23T13:56:15","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/migflug.com\/jetflights\/marine-fa18d-hornet-crash-rimrock-lake-washington-pine-tree-fire\/"},"modified":"2026-06-23T15:58:01","modified_gmt":"2026-06-23T13:58:01","slug":"marine-fa18d-hornet-crash-rimrock-lake-washington-pine-tree-fire","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/migflug.com\/jetflights\/marine-fa18d-hornet-crash-rimrock-lake-washington-pine-tree-fire\/","title":{"rendered":"Hornet Down: Marine Jet Crashes, Sparks Wildfire"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><style>.et_pb_title_container h1.entry-title { padding-top: 40px !important; }<\/style><\/p>\r\n<p>Just after noon on June 13, 2026, residents around Rimrock Lake heard the kind of sound that doesn\u2019t belong over a quiet stretch of the Washington Cascades: a fighter jet, low and fast, then a series of sharp pops. Seconds later a U.S. Marine Corps F\/A-18D Hornet slammed into a forested hillside, the pilot punched out, and a fireball lit the timber. The aircraft was gone. The pilot, somehow, was not.<\/p>\r\n<p>The jet went down roughly 55 miles southeast of Seattle, deep in the Okanogan-Wenatchee National Forest near Naches, Yakima County. The pilot ejected, was located by sheriff\u2019s deputies, and walked away with minor injuries. The wreck did something a routine training mishap usually doesn\u2019t: it started a wildfire, since named the Pine Tree Fire.<\/p>\r\n<p>It is a story with three improbable strands \u2014 a survivable ejection over rugged terrain, a military jet igniting a forest fire, and an aging Cold War workhorse still flying in an age of stealth. Here is what is confirmed, and what isn\u2019t.<\/p>\r\n\r\n<div style=\"background: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 8px; padding: 18px 22px; margin: 8px 0 26px;\">\r\n<p style=\"margin: 0 0 10px; font-weight: bold; font-size: 17px; color: #222;\">Quick Facts<\/p>\r\n<ul style=\"margin: 0; padding-left: 18px; line-height: 1.8;\">\r\n<li><strong>Date:<\/strong> June 13, 2026, ~12:00 PDT<\/li>\r\n<li><strong>Aircraft:<\/strong> F\/A-18D Hornet (two-seat Legacy Hornet), U.S. Marine Corps<\/li>\r\n<li><strong>Unit (per open-source identification):<\/strong> VMFA-323 \u201cDeath Rattlers,\u201d MCAS Miramar, CA; assigned to MAG-11, 3rd Marine Aircraft Wing<\/li>\r\n<li><strong>Location:<\/strong> near Rimrock Lake, Okanogan-Wenatchee National Forest, Yakima County, WA<\/li>\r\n<li><strong>Aboard:<\/strong> reportedly a single pilot; pilot ejected and survived (minor injuries, hospitalized)<\/li>\r\n<li><strong>Aftermath:<\/strong> crash ignited a wildfire, the \u201cPine Tree Fire,\u201d reported at ~2 acres<\/li>\r\n<li><strong>Cause:<\/strong> under investigation (3rd MAW)<\/li>\r\n<\/ul>\r\n<\/div>\r\n\r\n<h2 style=\"padding-top: 22px;\">The Ejection Everyone Saw<\/h2>\r\n<p>What made this crash spread online within the hour wasn\u2019t the official statement \u2014 it was the phone footage. Bystanders along the lake caught the Hornet\u2019s final moments and, in some clips, the pilot\u2019s parachute against the smoke. A military ejection is violent physics: an explosive charge and rocket motor hurl the seat clear of the airframe in a fraction of a second, the canopy gone, the body subjected to forces that can compress the spine. That the pilot survived it over mountainous terrain, then was walked out by medics, is the good news buried in a bad day.<\/p>\r\n<p>The 3rd Marine Aircraft Wing confirmed the basics quickly and said little else, which is standard while a mishap board is convened.<\/p>\r\n\r\n<div style=\"background: #f8f9fa; border-left: 4px solid #1565c0; padding: 20px 22px; margin: 18px 0 24px; border-radius: 0 8px 8px 0; font-size: 16px; line-height: 1.7;\"><em>\u201cThe cause of the mishap is currently under investigation. To preserve the integrity of the investigation, no additional details are available at this time. Mishap investigations can take several months to complete, depending on various factors.\u201d<\/em>\r\n<div style=\"margin-top: 10px; font-size: 14px; color: #555;\"><strong>3rd Marine Aircraft Wing<\/strong> \u2014 Official press release, June 2026<\/div>\r\n<\/div>\r\n\r\n<p>One detail worth flagging carefully: the F\/A-18D is a two-seat jet, but reporting indicates a single pilot was aboard for this training flight. We are attributing that as a report, not a certainty \u2014 the Marine Corps has not published a crew manifest, and the investigation will settle it.<\/p>\r\n\r\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\" style=\"margin: 0 0 24px;\"><img data-opt-id=730409068  fetchpriority=\"high\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"skip-lazy\" style=\"max-width: 100%; height: auto; border-radius: 6px;\" src=\"https:\/\/ml5psubhxdln.i.optimole.com\/cb:0e0_.b970\/w:auto\/h:auto\/q:mauto\/ig:avif\/https:\/\/migflug.com\/jetflights\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2026\/06\/vmfa323-fa18c-death-rattlers-carrier-launch.jpg\" alt=\"VMFA-323 Death Rattlers F\/A-18C launching from a carrier\" data-no-lazy=\"1\" \/>\r\n<figcaption style=\"font-size: 13px; color: #777; text-align: center; margin-top: 6px; font-style: italic;\">A VMFA-323 \u201cDeath Rattlers\u201d Hornet launches during the squadron\u2019s final F\/A-18 carrier deployment. Image: U.S. Navy via Wikimedia Commons<\/figcaption>\r\n<\/figure>\r\n\r\n<h2 style=\"padding-top: 22px;\">A Jet Crash That Started a Forest Fire<\/h2>\r\n<p>Aircraft crashes are usually contained disasters \u2014 a wreck field, a recovery operation, a closed road. This one came with a second act. The impact and the fuel-fed explosion set the surrounding timber alight, and the National Interagency Fire Center logged a new blaze: the Pine Tree Fire, reported at roughly two acres before crews moved in. In a dry Cascade summer, a jet full of fuel hitting a forested slope is exactly the ignition source fire managers dread.<\/p>\r\n<p>Witnesses near the lake described hearing the jet before they understood what they were watching. \u201cA couple of jets had already buzzed over the lake. We heard another one coming, but it made popping sounds,\u201d resident Tina Liniger told KING 5. The Yakima County Sheriff\u2019s Office said simply that a fire had started as a result of the crash and that local fire personnel were on scene.<\/p>\r\n<p>The terrain itself is part of the story. The mishap occurred along Visual Route 1355 (VR-1355), a low-level training corridor threading the valleys of the Cascades \u2014 scenic, demanding, and popular with the Growler squadrons up at NAS Whidbey Island. Flying fast and low through that country is the entire point; it is also unforgiving of any failure.<\/p>\r\n\r\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\" style=\"margin: 0 0 24px;\"><img data-opt-id=1561067269  fetchpriority=\"high\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"skip-lazy\" style=\"max-width: 100%; height: auto; border-radius: 6px;\" src=\"https:\/\/ml5psubhxdln.i.optimole.com\/cb:0e0_.b970\/w:auto\/h:auto\/q:mauto\/ig:avif\/https:\/\/migflug.com\/jetflights\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2026\/06\/rimrock-lake-cascades-washington.jpg\" alt=\"Rimrock Lake and the forested Cascade Mountains\" data-no-lazy=\"1\" \/>\r\n<figcaption style=\"font-size: 13px; color: #777; text-align: center; margin-top: 6px; font-style: italic;\">Rimrock Lake, in the Okanogan-Wenatchee National Forest of Yakima County \u2014 the rugged, timbered terrain where the Hornet went down. Image: Wikimedia Commons<\/figcaption>\r\n<\/figure>\r\n\r\n<h2 style=\"padding-top: 22px;\">How They Knew Which Jet It Was<\/h2>\r\n<p>The Marine Corps didn\u2019t name the type or unit at first. The internet did. Aviation trackers identified the airframe as BuNo 165412, tail code WS-415, flying under the callsign SNAKE 21 \u2014 an F\/A-18D from VMFA-323 \u201cDeath Rattlers,\u201d the Miramar-based squadron that had deployed a handful of Hornets up to Boeing Field in Seattle. A Puget Sound photographer reportedly noticed that only three of the four visiting jets came home.<\/p>\r\n\r\n<div style=\"max-width: 550px; margin: 0 auto 28px;\"><iframe class=\"skip-lazy\" style=\"width: 100%; height: 520px; border: none; border-radius: 12px; overflow: hidden;\" src=\"https:\/\/platform.twitter.com\/embed\/Tweet.html?id=2065935637388370264&amp;theme=light\" allowfullscreen=\"allowfullscreen\" data-no-lazy=\"1\"><\/iframe><\/div>\r\n\r\n<p>We treat that identification as credible open-source reporting rather than an official confirmation, because 3rd MAW has not formally released the tail number or unit. But it is consistent across multiple aviation outlets and the photographic record of the deployment.<\/p>\r\n<h2 style=\"padding-top: 22px;\">An Old Warrior in a Stealth Age<\/h2>\r\n<p>The F\/A-18D is a \u201cLegacy\u201d Hornet \u2014 the original Hornet family that first flew in the late 1970s, not the larger Super Hornet. For decades these jets were the backbone of Marine fixed-wing aviation. Today they are the exception. The Marine Corps has been retiring its Legacy Hornets and standing up F-35B and F-35C squadrons, and VMFA-323 itself flew what was billed as the Corps\u2019 last F\/A-18 carrier deployment before beginning its own transition. Every remaining Hornet is, in effect, running on borrowed time.<\/p>\r\n<p>That context matters without becoming the story. A jet\u2019s age does not, by itself, explain a crash \u2014 and nobody should read one into this one. The cause is under investigation, full stop. What is fair to say is that operating a shrinking fleet of older airframes hard, on demanding low-level routes, is the daily reality of a force in the middle of a generational handover.<\/p>\r\n<p>For now the headline is the one that matters most: the jet is a total loss, the forest took a scar, and the pilot is alive to fly again. Investigators will spend months on the rest.<\/p>\r\n\r\n<div style=\"position: relative; padding-bottom: 56.25%; height: 0; overflow: hidden; margin: 24px 0;\"><iframe class=\"skip-lazy\" style=\"position: absolute; top: 0; left: 0; width: 100%; height: 100%; border: 0; border-radius: 8px;\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/wkGJYnki1_o\" allowfullscreen=\"allowfullscreen\" data-no-lazy=\"1\"><\/iframe><\/div>\r\n\r\n<p style=\"font-size: 14px; color: #555; font-style: italic;\">Local and aviation-news coverage of the Rimrock Lake crash and the resulting wildfire.<\/p>\r\n<p style=\"font-size: 14px; color: #777; font-style: italic;\">Sources: The Aviationist; Marine Corps Times; Task &amp; Purpose; CBS News; KING 5; KIRO 7; NBC Right Now; AccuWeather; 3rd Marine Aircraft Wing statement; National Interagency Fire Center.<\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Just after noon on June 13, 2026, residents around Rimrock Lake heard the kind of sound that doesn\u2019t belong over a quiet stretch of the Washington Cascades: a fighter jet, low and fast, then a series of sharp pops. Seconds later a U.S. Marine Corps F\/A-18D Hornet slammed into a forested hillside, the pilot punched [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":26,"featured_media":2527984,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"editor_notices":[],"footnotes":""},"categories":[664,670],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2528643","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-military-aviation","category-news"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v27.8 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>Marine F\/A-18D Hornet Crashes Near Rimrock Lake, WA<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"A USMC F\/A-18D Hornet crashed near Rimrock Lake, WA on June 13, 2026. 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The pilot ejected and survived; the wreck sparked the Pine Tree Fire.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/migflug.com\/jetflights\/marine-fa18d-hornet-crash-rimrock-lake-washington-pine-tree-fire\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"MiGFlug.com Blog\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2026-06-23T13:56:15+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2026-06-23T13:58:01+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/ml5psubhxdln.i.optimole.com\/cb:0e0_.b970\/w:auto\/h:auto\/q:mauto\/ig:avif\/https:\/\/migflug.com\/jetflights\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2026\/06\/vmfa323-fa18d-legacy-hornet-deathrattlers.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"2000\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"1125\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Joseph Duncan\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Joseph Duncan\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"7 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/migflug.com\\\/jetflights\\\/marine-fa18d-hornet-crash-rimrock-lake-washington-pine-tree-fire\\\/#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/migflug.com\\\/jetflights\\\/marine-fa18d-hornet-crash-rimrock-lake-washington-pine-tree-fire\\\/\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"Joseph Duncan\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/migflug.com\\\/jetflights\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/b969321b26faa21775f0c40e141cdf85\"},\"headline\":\"Hornet Down: Marine Jet Crashes, Sparks Wildfire\",\"datePublished\":\"2026-06-23T13:56:15+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2026-06-23T13:58:01+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/migflug.com\\\/jetflights\\\/marine-fa18d-hornet-crash-rimrock-lake-washington-pine-tree-fire\\\/\"},\"wordCount\":1078,\"commentCount\":0,\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/migflug.com\\\/jetflights\\\/marine-fa18d-hornet-crash-rimrock-lake-washington-pine-tree-fire\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\/\\/migflug.com\\/jetflights\\/wp-content\\/uploads\\/sites\\/4\\/2026\\/06\\/vmfa323-fa18d-legacy-hornet-deathrattlers.jpg\",\"articleSection\":[\"Military Aviation\",\"News\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"CommentAction\",\"name\":\"Comment\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/migflug.com\\\/jetflights\\\/marine-fa18d-hornet-crash-rimrock-lake-washington-pine-tree-fire\\\/#respond\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/migflug.com\\\/jetflights\\\/marine-fa18d-hornet-crash-rimrock-lake-washington-pine-tree-fire\\\/\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/migflug.com\\\/jetflights\\\/marine-fa18d-hornet-crash-rimrock-lake-washington-pine-tree-fire\\\/\",\"name\":\"Marine F\\\/A-18D Hornet Crashes Near Rimrock Lake, WA\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/migflug.com\\\/jetflights\\\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/migflug.com\\\/jetflights\\\/marine-fa18d-hornet-crash-rimrock-lake-washington-pine-tree-fire\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/migflug.com\\\/jetflights\\\/marine-fa18d-hornet-crash-rimrock-lake-washington-pine-tree-fire\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\/\\/migflug.com\\/jetflights\\/wp-content\\/uploads\\/sites\\/4\\/2026\\/06\\/vmfa323-fa18d-legacy-hornet-deathrattlers.jpg\",\"datePublished\":\"2026-06-23T13:56:15+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2026-06-23T13:58:01+00:00\",\"author\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/migflug.com\\\/jetflights\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/b969321b26faa21775f0c40e141cdf85\"},\"description\":\"A USMC F\\\/A-18D Hornet crashed near Rimrock Lake, WA on June 13, 2026. 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