SAN DIEGO (FOX 5/KUSI) — Parts of San Diego Bay are reopening to boaters as efforts to recover the crashed military plane begin to wrap up.
The U.S. Navy this weekend said crews have salvaged most of the debris from an EA-18G Growler that crashed in San Diego Bay during misty and rainy conditions on February 12.
U.S. Navy fighter jet crashes near Shelter Island while attempting to land
On Sunday, crews began removing some of the heavy equipment, including cranes and barges, that have been visible near Shelter Island since recovery operations began, according to USN Third Fleet command.
Civilian boaters will once again have full access to the Shelter Island basin channel as recovery operations wind down.
Photos: Crews pull first pieces of crashed Navy plane from San Diego Bay; safety warning issued
This comes after the Coast Guard set up a temporary safety zone immediately following the crash for waters in the vicinity of Naval Base Point Loma and Shelter Island in San Diego Bay, and ordered a temporary hard closure for the Shelter Island basin.
The Navy said crews so far have recovered more than 15 tons of wreckage from San Diego Bay, and had around 9,000 pounds of plane debris left to recover as of Friday…