Blue Angels Jet Crashes in Tennessee One Day Before Hunter Hayes Set to Fly With Pilots
"My heart and prayers are with the pilot's family and the entire Blue Angels team," Hayes said.
One person has been reported dead after a U.S. Navy Blue Angels jet crashed Thursday afternoon in Smyrna, Tennessee. The accident occurred at approximately 3 p.m. near Weakly Lane ahead of the Great Tennessee Airshow scheduled for this weekend, WKRN News 2 reports.
According to The Tennessean, Rutherford County fire chief Larry Farley reportedly said one his dispatchers was told a person was killed. The victims’s identity has not yet been released.
Country star Hunter Hayes was set to fly with the Blue Angels on Friday. Hayes’ publicist spoke with News 2 and has said that the singer was not injured and revealed that the crash took place right in front of him.
Six Blue Angels jets flew over downtown Nashville earlier Thursday morning. They were scheduled to fly at the Great Tennessee Airshow on Saturday and Sunday. It is not yet clear if the show will be affected.
Update: The fallen pilot has been identified as Marine Capt. Jeff Kuss, 32. The Navy will conduct an investigation to determine the cause of the crash.
This evening, Hayes posted a statement regarding the incident to his Twitter account. “The tragedy today with the Blue Angels is so devastating,” he wrote. “My heart and prayers are with the pilot’s family and the entire Blue Angels team.”
PHOTOS: Reports of Blue Angels jet crashes in Smyrna. pic.twitter.com/77iUz9WBPc
— NewsChannel 5 (@NC5) June 2, 2016
