Details are scarce at this time, but the FAA has confirmed that an F-16 collided in mid-air with a light aircraft over Berkeley County, South Carolina. Bystanders on the ground said they saw a massive fireball and that the F-16 pilot appeared to have ejected after the impact.
The aircraft wreckage clearly shows an F-16CJ from the 55th Fighter Squadron out of Shaw AFB in South Carolina.
The crash is said to have occurred about 10 miles north of Charleston. The area in question is shown in the portion of FAA sectional chart below. As you can see, military low-level training routes run through that exact area although it remains unclear if the F-16 was utilizing one of these routes at the time of the collision.
Update 1:47pm EST: Multiple reports state the pilot was recovered alive and in good condition.
Update 3:00pm EST: The light aircraft involved is said to be a Cessna 150.
Update: 7/8/2015 12:23PST: Cessna pilot was 68 years old riding with his son.
We will keep you updated as more details become available.
Contact the author at Tyler@jalopnik.com.