NORAD F-15s Track Unresponsive Aircraft

A TBM-700 light business and utility turboprop plane bound for Naples, Fla., crashed off the coast of Jamaica Friday afternoon carrying three people on board. The plane, was reported unresponsive after 10 a.m., and at 11:30 a.m., two NORAD F-15 fighter jets were deployed to investigate and accompany the aircraft across the Atlantic Ocean. NORAD & US Northern Command postulated via Twitter that perhaps hypoxia—or lack of oxygen—was to blame. According to a CNN report, fighter pilots tracking the plane saw a pilot slumped over. As the aircraft entered into Cuban airspace, the F-15 escorts returned to the base for refueling, but continued to monitor the plane’s whereabouts via radar, according to updates on NORAD’s Facebook page. The FAA confirmed the plane crashed around 2:15 p.m. off the coast of Port Antonio, Jamaica. (NORAD release)