A new video posted to Twitter purports to show the F-35 British fighter jet crashing into the water during takeoff as its pilot ejects.
On November 17, a British F-35B vertical short take-off and landing fighter jet crashed into the Mediterranean Sea. The pilot successfully ejected and escaped and was quickly recovered by the aircraft carrier crew.
This is the first F-35B fighter jet lost by the British Navy. While launching an investigation, the British Ministry of Defense also sought help from the United States in an attempt to salvage the F-35B fighter jet that crashed into the sea. The British Ministry of Defense hopes that “no enemy can obtain sensitive and confidential technology on board.” The Russian navy stationed in Syria is in the port of Tartus in Syria. However, the Russian navy’s deep-sea salvage ship does not seem to have entered the Mediterranean.
But as to how the F-35B crashed, the British Ministry of Defense did not give an explanation in the first place. However, some British media claimed that the ground crew forgot to remove a plastic waterproof cover on the air intake, which caused the F-35B fighter jet to lack thrust during take-off. At the same time, the waterproof cover was sucked into the engine and caused engine failure. In the end, this F-35B fighter jet fell into the sea Due to insufficient thrust, as soon as it left the ski jump deck.
At first, many people did not believe this statement. In addition to the fact that this statement came from the poorly-acclaimed “Sun”, there is also the fact that this statement is so hard to be confident that the ground crew will make such a naive mistake? But now, a surveillance video has been exposed, which seems to verify the “Sun” statement.
In the video, the F-35B crashed directly into the sea from the ski jump deck at the moment the ski jump took off. The pilot ejected decisively to escape. Martin Baker’s ejection seat made another contribution. The pilot slowly descended to the sea with the parachute and was quickly rescued. And this F-35B fell directly into the seabed at a depth of more than 1,600 meters, and it is likely to leave the original place with the movement of the ocean current.
This video was taken from the rear, and it is impossible to see whether the waterproof cover on the air inlet of this F-35B has forgotten to be removed. Aircraft carriers are the most dangerous and complex workplaces in the world. They are full of noise and various dangers. They are extremely unfriendly to the people working on them. Even if there are strict rules and regulations, there is no guarantee that accidents will not happen. This is also a US aircraft carrier. During the long period of going to sea, more or less accidents will occur, and even the main reason for crew suicides. If it is really because the ground crew forgot to remove the waterproof cover on the air inlet, it is not impossible. It is just that the F-35B vertical short take-off and landing fighter, which is worth hundreds of millions of dollars, has been lost.
The “Queen Elizabeth” aircraft carrier originally carried a total of 18 F-35B vertical short take-off and landing fighters, of which 8 belonged to the British Air Force, and the other 10 belonged to the US Marine Corps. Britain purchased a total of 48 F-35B fighter jets. It is very difficult to meet the needs of the “Queen Elizabeth” and “Prince of Wales” aircraft carriers. F-35Bs equipped with allies have become a necessary option. The British Secretary of Defense, Ben Wallace, complained that the maintenance cost of the F-35B remains high, threatening Lockheed Martin not to purchase additional F-35Bs until the F-35B’s operating costs are reduced to an acceptable range.