Blue Angels pilot identified

BEAUFORT, S.C., April 22 (UPI) -- The pilot killed in the crash of a Navy Blue Angels jet at a weekend airshow in South Carolina was identified Sunday as Lt. Cmdr. Kevin Davis.

Davis, 32, a native of Pittsfield, Mass., had more than a decade of service under his belt and had flown with the Navy's prestigious precision flight team for less than two years. Davis had accumulated about 2,500 flight hours, including service in the war in Afghanistan, CNN reported.

The airshow in Beaufort resumed Sunday but without the performance by the Blue Angels. Davis was honored with the playing of taps and a missing man formation, CNN reported.

Davis' squadron issued a statement, saying they were "grieving the loss of a great pilot, a great American and a great friend."

Capt. Sarah Kansteiner, a Marine Corps spokeswoman, said eight other people on the ground were injured when Davis' F/A-18A crashed Saturday but none sustained life-threatening injuries. Eight structures also were damaged, she said.

The cause of the crash, which occurred during a relatively routine close-formation portion of the routine by six aircraft near the end of their performance, remains under investigation.