A US Navy F/A-18C Hornet jet aircraft crashed during training in the western state of Nevada, the navy said in a statement.
There was no immediate news on the fate of the pilot.
The fighter plane, assigned to the Naval Strike and Air Warfare Centre in Fallon, in western Nevada, crashed at approximately 3:00 pm (2300 GMT) on a training range some 112 kilometres east of Naval Air Station Fallon.
"The Navy has not officially confirmed the status of the aircraft crewmember. The aircraft was conducting a training flight prior to the crash," the statement read.
It added: "A safety investigation will be carried out to determine the cause."
Boeing-built Hornets, used as attack planes and as a fighters, have been in service since the 1980s.
