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A US Air Force pilot safely ejected before his F-16 fighter jet crashed into the sea off South Korea’s coast, US and South Korean military officials have said.

The pilot was recovered by the South Korean coastguard and was “awake and in stable condition,” the US 8th Fighter Wing said in a statement.

The pilot took off from Kunsan Air Base near the southwestern port city of Gunsan on a routine training flight and was forced to eject from the aircraft after experiencing an unspecified in-flight emergency.

The 8th Fighter Wing said the cause of the in-flight emergency is being investigated.

“We are grateful for the safe recovery of our Airman by our ROK Allies and that the pilot is in good condition,” Colonel Matthew C Gaetke, the 8th Fighter Wing commander, said in a statement, referring to the Republic of Korea, South Korea’s official name.

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It comes after a US Air Force Osprey aircraft crashed off southern Japan on 29 November during a training mission, killing all eight people on board.

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Diverted American Airlines flight escorted by Italian fighter jets after ‘bomb threat’

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Diverted American Airlines flight escorted by Italian fighter jets after 'bomb threat'

An American Airlines flight travelling from New York to New Delhi was diverted midair due to a “bomb threat”.

Flight 292 landed at Rome’s Leonardo da Vinci Rome Fiumicino Airport “due to a possible security issue,” the airline said in a statement on Sunday, adding later the threat “was determined to be non-credible”.

The airline did not clarify what the security issue was, but a source familiar with the situation told Sky News’ US partner network NBC News it was a bomb threat sent via email.

The Federal Aviation Administration said the crew reported the security issue.

“Safety and security are our top priorities, and we apologise to our customers for the inconvenience,” the airline said in a statement.

An American Airlines plane is seen from the cockpit of an Italian Air Force Eurofighter aircraft, as it is escorted, in this handout photo obtained by Reuters on February 23, 2025. Italian Air Force/Handout via REUTERS THIS IMAGE HAS BEEN SUPPLIED BY A THIRD PARTY
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The view from the cockpit of the fighter jet. Pic: Italian air force/Reuters

An Italian Air Force Eurofighter aircraft escorts an American Airlines plane in this handout photo obtained by Reuters on February 23, 2025. Italian Air Force/Handout via REUTERS THIS IMAGE HAS BEEN SUPPLIED BY A THIRD PARTY
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Pic: Italian air force/Reuters

The flight requested a diversion to Rome’s Leonardo da Vinci Rome Fiumicino Airport at around 2pm local time, Roberto Rao, a spokesperson for the airport.

“We immediately agreed and organised a safe landing,” Mr Rao told NBC News.

“We don’t know what the security concern was, but my opinion is that it was serious enough to divert the plane, but not urgent, because we received the alert when the plane was over the Caspian Sea, a three hours’ flight from Rome.”

Once in Italian airspace, the plane was escorted by two Italian air force fighter jets and landed in Rome at around 5.30pm local time.

American Airlines flight AA292 en route from New York to New Delhi that turned around over the Caspian Sea Sunday, Feb. 23, 2025, sits on the tamarack of Rome's Leonardo da Vinci International airport. (AP Photo/Kirsty Wigglesworth)
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The flight on the ground in Rome. Pic: AP

‘What’s going on here?’

Neeraj Chopra, one of the 199 passengers on board, said the captain announced the plane had to turn around about three hours before it was supposed to land in New Delhi because of a change in “security status”.

Mr Chopra, who was traveling to India to visit family, described the mood on board as calm until the captain later announced that fighter jets would be escorting their plane to Rome.

“I felt a little panic of, okay, what’s going on here?” Mr Chopra told the Associated Press. “There’s got to be like something bigger going on here.”

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Jonathan Bacon, 22, added that once on the ground, all passengers were loaded on to buses and taken to the terminal, where each passenger and their personal items underwent additional security screenings that were time-consuming and felt “slightly heightened”.

More than two hours after landing, Mr Bacon and his friend said they were still waiting for their checked baggage. “It was definitely the longest flight to Europe I’ve ever taken,” he said.

American Airlines said the plane was inspected and cleared to depart again for New Delhi “as soon as possible” on Monday, after the crew gets some rest.

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At least three dead after boat capsizes off New York coast

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At least three dead after boat capsizes off New York coast

At least three people have died and two are injured after a boat capsized off the coast of New York, police in the US have said.

The vessel sent out a distress call from the Ambrose Channel just after noon on Sunday.

One of the injured is in a critical condition and another is described as stable, NBC, Sky’s US partner, said.

Five people were rescued from the water after the New York Fire Department (FDNY), the New York Police Department (NYPD), and the US Coast Guard responded to the call for help.

The boat capsized in an area known as Breezy Point, NBC said, quoting the NYPD.

Breezy Point is “a neighborhood at the tip of Queens’ Rockaway peninsula,” according to NBC New York, citing the Coast Guard.

Six people were said to be in the water after the boat capsized, the FDNY said.

Two of the victims were airlifted to Staten Island University Hospital and three were taken to Coast Guard Station Sandy Hook, where its emergency medical crews were waiting to treat them, the agency said.

Four of the five people rescued from the sinking boat were unresponsive, and some of them were given CPR, the Coast Guard said.

The Coast Guard said on Sunday night it is still searching for one person missing in the water roughly five miles (8km) southeast of Breezy Point.

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Nothing else is known about the victims or what kind of boat was involved.

Police said it is not clear what happened but it did not appear the vessel collided with another boat. The Coast Guard said it was notified of a “vessel taking on water” and described the boat as “sinking”.

The investigation is ongoing.

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Day 34: Why Trump really flipped the script on Ukraine

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Day 34: Why Trump really flipped the script on Ukraine

👉 Follow Trump 100 on your podcast app 👈

As President Trump claims he is “close” to signing a mining deal with Ukraine, and his secretary of state Marco Rubio talks about a lack of “gratitude” from President Zelenskyy for US military assistance, our US correspondents Mark Stone, Martha Kelner and James Matthews discuss if this is the real reason Trump’s administration appears to have turned its back on Ukraine.

And, why Canada is taking its feud with Donald Trump on to the ice.

You can email James, Mark and Martha on trump100@sky.uk

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