Analysis

US carrier dumps $72m fighter into the sea as it tries to avoid Yemeni drones

Yet another US jet downed by its own side under pressure from Yemen, which continues to try to prevent Israel’s genocide

Mocked-up image of F-18 Super Hornet falling off the side of the carrier.

The USS Truman aircraft carrier has dumped an F-18 Super Hornet fighter aircraft and its ‘tug’ and towing gear off the side and into the ocean as it tried to avoid incoming drones fired by Yemen’s Ansar Allah (Houthi) de facto government.

The ship is said to have swerved hard in an ’emergency evasive manoeuvre’ and the fighter, which was in the process of being moved, went overboard. No one was injured. The cost of the fighter is around 72 million US dollars, while the drones fired by Yemen – which is maintaining its blockade of Israeli and Israel-bound shipping as part of its obligation under international law to stop Israel’s Gaza genocide and starvation blockade – cost a few tens of thousands.

While the US, with UK help, have relentlessly bombed Yemeni civilians – and killed more than 125 African refugees in Sana’a at the weekend in a strike on an asylum-seeker centre – the Yemenis have attacked military targets and ships bound for or run by Israel.

The US presence in the area has not had a smooth time. Two months ago, the Truman collided with a cargo vessel near Port Said in Egypt, leading to the sacking of the US captain, and his replacement has now lost a phenomenally expensive fighter. In December, the USS Gettysburg shot down another US Super Hornet under attack from Yemen.

And rumours persist that Ansar Allah succeeded in sinking a US vessel entirely after US president Donald Trump crowed after a US attack – again on civilians in the Yemeni desert gathered to celebrate Eid – that they would “never sink our ships again!” The US navy has not admitted the sinking, however.

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7 comments

  1. Ordinarily, I’d be having a good chortle.

    But you know john j murrica’s gonna murder a few dozen/hundred/thousand Yemeni civilians in petty revenge.

  2. I read in this morning’s papers that the UK government has taken the decision to attack Yemen. I am unaware of any parliamentary debate on this issue of going into a war of choice with a country that has made no direct or surprise attacks on the UK, which would be the only circumstance where they could justifiably use the Royal Prerogative to enter into a conflict. Blimey, even the Tories had a Parliamentary debate on bombing Syria back in 2016 when Hillary Benn made his infamous speech, more as a petty attack on the morally-superior and rational Jeremy Corbyn rather than one borne of national need.

    https://www.instituteforgovernment.org.uk/explainer/parliamentary-approval-military-action

    1. The question is, what would constitute an “attack” in the context of a declaration of war?

      Would, for example, covert activity (either alone or in conjunction with others) seeking regime change by replacing a Government of a Country with a puppet Government constitute an attack? (Iran and Iraq in the 1950’s and 60’s being merely two examples among others where no declaration of war was made)

      Or providing active intelligence support for fanatical head chopping Jihadists to overthrow Governments? (Syria springs to mind in recent times).

      Perhaps flying intelligence surveillance and providing munitions to aid a genocide? (Palestine).

      Training and materially* supplying a neo-Nazi regime – along with advisors and “mercenaries” seconded from your own armed forces – and providing targeting data and planning to wage war on and invade another Country, mayhap? (Russian Federation via our Ukraine proxy).

      *Up to and including not only billions of pounds which would be better spent on providing for our own populace, infrastructure and economy but also putting ourselves in hock to the tune of tens, if not hundreds, of billions of pounds we don’t have by providing loan guarantees to the IMF for which we have no collateral except the dodgy minerals and resources deal Herr Starmer did with an unelected coke snorting clown (whose party piece is playing the piano with his penis) in his 100 year Reich agreement back in January 2025.

      No wonder Sunak wanted out:

      https://x.com/ABridgen/status/1789726877839405417?lang=en-GB

      Fact is, the UK via various bought and paid for puppet administrations have been waging effective war for decades with no proper democratic oversight and control.

      1. Your list emphasises the need for democratic control. I wouldn’t necessarily agree with all your examples …. yet by me saying that I am emphasising what should be happening in Parliament. There are different points of view that should be expressed and argued over before a decision is reached. WE as a country just seem to latch on to the USA coat-tails, not so much “My country, right or wrong,” as “America right or wrong.” Starmer is like a teenager in his first romance with a young lady called Trump. Like many young ladies put on a pedestal by an immature admirer, “She” keeps saying “P*ss off!” but that only seems to increase his ardour. How many times in how many ways does Trump have to tell the idiot that the romance was over years ago and she has other liaisons now?

      2. There does exist, let’s go with, a school of thought which argues that the USA is merely the muscle in that relationship on behalf of a jingoistic gung ho CoL.

        Granted, this is usually argued by certain sections within the USA which, admittedly, has a poor record in regard to the concept of responsibility.

        Nevertheless, and notwithstanding the Globalist UK head of state’s invitation to Trump for the USA to become a member of the “Commonwealth”, when it comes to the resources of the Middle East and Eurasia the UK (i.e the English Establishment) has for many generations being the most enthusiastic for urging conflict in order to plunder resources that do not belong to it.

        And that does go all the way to the Crusades.

  3. David and Goliath it looks like they shitte themselves when a little drone appears hmmm

    1. Quite. They went into Vietnam with carpet bombing, agent orange (no – not him, he had sore legs at the time), helicopters galore, and all the modern armaments money could buy. Even more of the same in Afghanistan. They ended up running away when confronted by folks with very old rifles and bullets!

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