This afternoon at approximately 2:30 PM PDT, an F/A-18E Super Hornet based at Naval Air Station Lemoore, Calif. crashed in the vicinity of Trona, Calif. The pilot is confirmed deceased. The identity of the pilot will not be released until 24 hours after the next of kin have been notified. Naval Air Weapons Station China Lake Federal Firefighters and Naval Security Forces are on site. No civilians were harmed in this incident. More information will be made available at the earliest opportunity.