USA Today: US authorities found the missing crashed F35 jet
The USA today published an article by its breaking news reporters Krystal Nurse, which she discussed the story of the missing F35, which crashed in Southern South Carolina and raised a big question, how did a stealth fighter go missing?
Debris from a missing F35 Lightning II stealth fighter jet have been located in South Carolina about two hours north of where a pilot ejected and parachuted to safety.
But many questions remain amid an ongoing investigation into the incident.
The US Marine Corps hasn’t yet released much information about how the most expensive aircraft went missing and crashed.
“How in the hell do you lose an F-35?”
According to South Carolina US Rep. Nancy Mace, R-Charleston, wrote on X platform, “How is there not a tracking device and we’re asking the public to what, find a jet and turn it in?”
The US Marine Corps is handling the investigation, now documented as a “Class-A mishap,” according to the defense agency.
That occurs when damages reach $2.5 million or more, a Department of Defense aircraft is destroyed, or someone dies or is permanently disabled.
A two-day stand down was ordered for the Marine Corps on Sept. 18 as they searched for the jet, Acting Commandant Gen. Eric Smith said in a release.
The 2nd Marine Aircraft Wing of the Marine Corps didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment.
According to Lockheed Martin, the creator of the fighter jet, the F35B Lightning II is the most lethal and survivable aircraft in the world.
It can take off in short distances and is operated by the US Marine Corps, the UK and the Italian Air Force.
Lockheed Martin had reached a $4 billion deal with the Pentagon in 2014 to bring in a new fleet of F-35 and overall lower the cost of the planes by about 3%.
Regarding the crash, details about how the jet went missing haven’t yet been released.
The jet originated from the US Marine Corps Air Station Beaufort in South Carolina, about an hour north of Savannah, Georgia.
A spokesman from Joint Base Charleston told NBC News the aircraft was in autopilot when the pilot ejected.
The US military located debris from the jet nearly 80 miles (128 Km) north of Joint Base Charleston, which houses military operations and wings for the Air Force and Navy.
Units from the Navy, Air Force, Coast Guard Army and Marines are at the base as well.
The Joint Base Charleston said in a post on X debris from the jet was found in Williamsburg County, South Carolina, about two hours north of the base.
Residents are being asked to avoid the area as a recovery team works to secure it.
A spokesperson for Joint Base Charleston told USA Today the debris field is also two hours north of where the pilot ejected and landed, and details about what caused the pilot to eject are under investigation.
