At least seven American sailors were injured following a “landing mishap” involving a combat aircraft on the deck of a nuclear-powered US carrier, which was sailing in the South China Sea, the US Navy has said.

In a statement issued late on Monday, the US Pacific Fleet command said that the F-35C Lightning II jet “was conducting routine flight operations” when the crash happened on the deck of the USS Carl Vinson, Al-Jazeera reported.

“The pilot safely ejected from the aircraft and was recovered via US military helicopter,” the statement from the US Navy’s office in Hawaii said, adding that the airman “is in stable condition”.

Of the seven sailors who were injured, three were medically evacuated to a treatment facility in the Philippine capital of Manila.

The statement did not say why the three personnel had to be evacuated, but added that they were later “assessed as stable”.

Four other personnel were treated on board the USS Carl Vinson, and three of them were released.

There were no additional details provided on the condition of the fourth sailor.

The US Navy said that the cause of the “inflight mishap is under investigation”.

The statement did not provide information about the condition of the F-35C aircraft and whether the USS Carl Vinson sustained any physical damage.

MP/PR