El Toro : Marines Who Ditched Plane Reported ‘Fine’

Two Marines stationed at El Toro Marine Corps Air Station who ejected over the Pacific Ocean after their jet bomber developed mechanical difficulties were in good shape Sunday but remained under medical observation aboard an aircraft carrier, a Marine spokesman said.

The pilot, Capt. Vincent P. Higgins, and bombadier-navigator, Richard J. Racine, who were rescued immediately after they ejected, were both “fine,” according Staff Sgt. Ronald Turner, spokesman for the El Toro Marine Base.

Turner said information on their ages and hometowns was unavailable Sunday.

The plane, a Marine A-6E, was part of Marine All-Weather Attack Squadron 121, which was attached to the aircraft carrier Ranger for maneuvers in the Pacific. The ship was en route to its home base in San Diego from Hawaii when the plane went down about 1,400 miles off the Southern California coast Saturday.