Officials: Navy jet crashes in Tennessee national forest

TELLICO PLAINS, Tenn. – Officials say a U.S. Navy plane crashed in the Cherokee National Forest in southeastern Tennessee.

Monroe County Emergency Management Director David Chambers tells the Knoxville News Sentinel the crash occurred Sunday afternoon in Tellico Plains, about 45 miles (72 kilometres) southwest of Knoxville.

Chambers says the field of debris is estimated to be at least a half-mile long.

The Navy confirms in a statement that a T-45C Goshawk aircraft was training in the area and had not returned to its Mississippi base by late Sunday. The statement says two pilots were on board and their status is unknown.

In April, the Navy grounded a fleet of T-45C Goshawks amid reports of problems with the cockpit oxygen systems.

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Information from: Knoxville News Sentinel, http://www.knoxnews.com