Moment F-35 pilot ejects after crash landing in fighter jet
A shocking video captured the moment a pilot ejected from a fighter jet after it crash landed at an airfield in Texas.
The dramatic scene took place around 10am on Thursday at Naval Air Station Joint Reserve Base in Fort Worth, Texas. The plane, a Marine Corp modified F-35B fighter jet, was landing as part of a routine exercise.
The F-35B is designed to be able to hover and land vertically like a helicopter. But as this jet makes contact with the ground, something goes wrong.
The plane bounces off the runway as its landing gear seemingly fall off. Then it dives nose-first into the ground, where it rotates a full 180 degrees before coming to a stop.
Eventually, the pilot ejects out of the cockpit, deploying an emergency parachute only a few feet above the ground.
Christopher Cook, the chief of police in nearby White Settlement, Texas, said the pilot was recovered ‘safe and under observation.’ It is unclear if they sustained any serious injuries.
‘You never want to get that call that there is an aircraft down,’ Cook said.
A Pentagon spokesperson confirmed that the pilot was a US government employee, but said the jet had not been transferred to the military yet from manufacturer Lockheed Martin.
Lockheed Martin, one of the largest contractors with the Department of Defense, stated that they were investigating the issue. ‘Safety is our priority, and we will follow appropriate investigation protocol,’ the company stated.
The F-35 program has come under increased scrutiny over the years due to its high price tag. An individual F-35 costs the US government about $79million, and a single flight can cost the over $9million.
Despite this, the Department of Defense said they reached a handshake deal with Lockheed Martin to purchase another 375 F-35 fighter jets for about $30billion.
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