What happened
The incident occurred while the aircraft was conducting a training mission that had departed from Jacksonville Naval Air Station. During the flight, the machine lost control or encountered an emergency that led to a crash into the St Johns River. The impact resulted in significant casualties among those on board. Emergency response teams were dispatched to the scene where six crew members were recovered as fatalities. In a partial success of the rescue operation, six other individuals were successfully pulled from the water and survived the accident.
Findings
The source material does not provide specific technical details regarding mechanical failures or pilot error. The event is characterized primarily by the outcome: a fatal crash during a routine training exercise near Jacksonville, with half of the personnel on board losing their lives while the other half were rescued.