The pilot of a U.S. Navy F/A-18 Super Hornet that crashed Wednesday in California's Death Valley National Park is dead, according to the U.S. Navy.
The pilot took off from Lemoore Naval Station with a second fighter jet to perform a low-level routine training exercise. Witnesses say the plane crashed into the side of a cliff.
Aaron Cassell, who was working at his family's Panamint Springs Ranch about 10 miles away was the first to report the crash to park dispatch.
"I just saw a black mushroom cloud go up," Cassell told The Associated Press. "Typically you don't see a mushroom cloud in the desert."
Seven park visitors had minor injuries. According to ABC30, those seven were French tourists — most sustained minor cuts and bruises, but one was transported to Los Angeles for burns.
Cassell said he heard jets flying through the area and then saw the cloud of smoke. He didn't see any parachute.
"It looked like a bomb," Cassell said. "To me that speaks of a very violent impact."
His father drove up to the area after the crash and saw a large black scorch mark and shattered parts of the jet scattered throughout the area between the parking lot and lookout, Cassell said. A nose cone from the jet was the size of a bowling ball and the rest of the debris was no larger than a ball cap.
The jet was from strike fighter squadron VFA-151 stationed at Lemoore. The squadron is part of an air group attached to the aircraft carrier USS John C. Stennis.
The Super Hornet is a twin-engine warplane designed to fly from either aircraft carriers or ground bases on both air-superiority and ground-attack missions.
The crash site is about 160 miles north of Los Angeles.
The Navy will wait 24 hours to release the pilot's name.