https://sputnikglobe.com/20230222/us-navy-blames-rookie-pilot-for-disastrous-f-35-crash-that-saw-jet-plummet-into-south-china-sea-1107684556.html
US Navy Blames Rookie Pilot for Disastrous F-35 Crash That Saw Jet Plummet Into South China Sea
US Navy Blames Rookie Pilot for Disastrous F-35 Crash That Saw Jet Plummet Into South China Sea
Sputnik International
A crash which left six US Navy sailors injured and left an F-35C Lighting II Joint Strike Fighter at the bottom of the South China Sea was caused by a mistake made by the pilot during landing, a Navy investigation found.
2023-02-22T04:15+0000
2023-02-22T04:15+0000
2023-02-22T04:15+0000
military
us navy
f-35
south china sea
investigation
rookie
pilot error
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A crash which left six US Navy sailors injured and left an F-35C Lighting II Joint Strike Fighter at the bottom of the South China Sea was caused by a mistake made by the pilot during landing, a Navy investigation found.“The mishap pilot (MP) attempted an expedited recovery breaking overhead the carrier, an approved and common maneuver, but the MP had never performed this maneuver before and it reduced the amount of time to configure the aircraft and conduct landing checks,” investigators claimed.“As a result of the compressed timeline and the MP's lack of familiarity with the maneuver, the MP lost situational awareness and failed to complete his landing checklist,” the recently-released report concludes.According to the US Naval Institute, “the investigation found that the F-35C pilot… was on his first deployment.”The error led to not only the total loss of the jet, but also forced the Navy to embark on a costly salvage mission over its apparent concerns that the Chinese military could be interested in recovering the craft.Lockheed Martin reportedly charges $94.4 million for the F-35C carrier variant. The much-maligned stealth fighter program has faced heavy criticism for its ongoing failures and enormous cost overruns.Those condemnations have intensified in the past several years as multiple jets suffered critical failures in high-profile incidents.In January, the Pentagon announced it was suspending deliveries of the F-35 engine used by the fighters after the pilot of an F-35B was forced to eject while crash-landing into the runway at a Texas air base last December. Just two months earlier, another F-35 pilot was forced to eject in Utah.
https://sputnikglobe.com/20220303/us-recovers-f-35-fighter-jet-that-fell-into-south-china-sea-earlier-this-year-1093563293.html
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us navy, f-35, south china sea, f-35 jet falls into south china sea, us navy investigation, pilot error
us navy, f-35, south china sea, f-35 jet falls into south china sea, us navy investigation, pilot error
US Navy Blames Rookie Pilot for Disastrous F-35 Crash That Saw Jet Plummet Into South China Sea
The pilot the military says was at fault was reportedly on his first deployment when the January 2022 mishap unfolded and resulted in the costly jet sinking into the South China Sea.
A crash which left six US Navy sailors injured and left an F-35C Lighting II Joint Strike Fighter at the bottom of the South China Sea was caused by a mistake made by the pilot during landing, a Navy investigation found.
“This mishap was the result of pilot error,” claims to a recently-published Navy investigation, which found a first-time F-35 pilot “remained in manual mode when he should have been (and thought he was) in an automated command mode” before striking the side of the USS Carl Vinson on January 24, 2022.
“The mishap pilot (MP) attempted an expedited recovery breaking overhead the carrier, an approved and common maneuver, but the MP had never performed this maneuver before and it reduced the amount of time to configure the aircraft and conduct landing checks,” investigators claimed.
“As a result of the compressed timeline and the MP's lack of familiarity with the maneuver, the MP lost situational awareness and failed to complete his landing checklist,” the recently-released report concludes.
According to the US Naval Institute, “the investigation found that the F-35C pilot… was on his first deployment.”
The error led to not only the total loss of the jet, but also forced the Navy to embark on a costly salvage mission over its apparent concerns that the Chinese military could be interested in recovering the craft.
Lockheed Martin reportedly
charges $94.4 million for the F-35C carrier variant. The much-maligned stealth fighter program has faced heavy criticism for its ongoing failures and enormous cost overruns.
Those condemnations have intensified in the past several years as multiple jets suffered critical failures in high-profile incidents.
In January, the Pentagon
announced it was suspending deliveries of the F-35 engine used by the fighters after the pilot of an F-35B was forced to eject while crash-landing into the runway at a Texas air base last December. Just two months earlier, another F-35 pilot was forced to
eject in Utah.
