SU-30SM, SU-35S, and SU-34 flying in formation - Sputnik International, 1920
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US' Troubled F-35 Jet Drops Fuselage Panel Over Pacific During Training Flight

© AP Photo / Petros KaradjiasF-35 aircraft fly over the U.K.'s aircraft carrier HMS Queen Elizabeth in the Mediterranean Sea on Sunday, June 20, 2021.
F-35 aircraft fly over the U.K.'s aircraft carrier HMS Queen Elizabeth in the Mediterranean Sea on Sunday, June 20, 2021.  - Sputnik International, 1920, 19.12.2023
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WASHINGTON (Sputnik) - A US Air Force F-35 Joint Strike Fighter dropped a side panel from its fuselage during a training flight over the western Pacific Ocean, a US military official confirmed on Tuesday.
The fighter jet returned to Kadena Air Base at 10:24 a.m. local time on Monday missing a 12 inch by 18 inch hexagonal side panel that weighed two pounds (0.9 kilograms), spokesperson Robert Dabbs confirmed in an email.
Dabbs said the panel fell from below the aircraft's cockpit on the right side. There have been no reports of any further damages or injuries as a result of the incident, and an investigation into the incident remains ongoing.
The panel covered electronic devices and without it the aircraft could lose its stealth capabilities, reports have indicated.
The F-35 incident is not the first to grab headlines in the region, with past aircraft mishaps having prompted locals to call on the US military to implement preventative measures. In late 2017, the window of a Super Stallion chopper broke off and crashed into a field used by a local elementary school, where dozens of children had been playing at the time.
A member of the Japanese Self-Defense Force Amphibious Rapid Deployment Brigade holds position while a US Marine Corps MV-22 Osprey tilt-rotor aircraft takes off during a joint exercise with US Marine Corps personnel at the Higashifuji training area in Gotemba, Shizuoka Prefecture on March 15, 2022.  - Sputnik International, 1920, 09.12.2023
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Why Pentagon Has Trouble Taming Its Wild V-22 Osprey
The latest comes after the US military grounded its entire fleet of V-22 Ospreys after a training mission off the Japanese coast turned fatal when the tiltrotor aircraft crashed, killing all aboard. The grounding came in response to preliminary findings that indicated the incident was the result of a non-human error. Similar to the F-35, the Osprey has been involved in several accidents.
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