F35 Crashes, Pilot Ejects

[fubar57]

View: https://imgur.com/CZqhycF

F-35 fighter jet crashes at Alaska Air Force base after pilot ejects

An Air Force pilot is safe after ejecting out of an F-35 fighter jet that then crashed at the Eielson Air Force Base in Alaska.

www.cbsnews.com

 

[SaparotRob]

View: https://imgur.com/CZqhycF

F-35 fighter jet crashes at Alaska Air Force base after pilot ejects

An Air Force pilot is safe after ejecting out of an F-35 fighter jet that then crashed at the Eielson Air Force Base in Alaska.

www.cbsnews.com

 

[Thumpalumpacus]

Following.

 

[Thumpalumpacus]

ANCHORAGE, Alaska — A U.S. Air Force pilot was reported to be safe after a single-seat F-35 fighter jet crashed Tuesday during a training exercise at a base in Alaska.

The pilot experienced an "inflight malfunction" but was able to eject from the aircraft, Col. Paul Townsend, commander of the 354th Fighter Wing, told a news conference. The plane crashed during the landing phase of the flight at Eielson Air Force Base, he said.

The pilot had declared an inflight emergency prior to the crash and was in stable condition and being evaluated at a medical facility, he said.

The crash, which occurred early Tuesday afternoon, caused significant damage to the aircraft, the Air Force said in a statement.

F-35 crashes and explodes in Alaska; pilot ejects safely

An Air Force pilot ejected safely after experiencing an “inflight malfunction” during a training exercise at Eielson Air Force Base, officials said.

www.airforcetimes.com

"Significant"? Yeah, buddy.

 

[fubar57]

"Significant"? Yeah, buddy.

Bang out a few dents, wash off the soot, a touch of paint............

 

[Thumpalumpacus]

Bang out a few dents, wash off the soot, a touch of paint............

That's right -- it'll buff out.

 

[GTX]

Looks like total flight control system failure. Will be interesting to see the eventual crash report

 

[GTX]

The crash, caused significant damage to the aircraft, the US Air Force said in a statement. Well no shit sherlock!!!

 

[Gnomey]

Significant is a bit downplaying it isn't it? At least the pilot is safe.

 

[SaparotRob]

Significant is a bit downplaying it isn't it? At least the pilot is safe.

Yes it is but it's still a delightful bit of understatement.

 

[Thumpalumpacus]

May or may not be informative, but --


View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NvWCiC3ki9s

 

[Barrett]

ANCHORAGE, Alaska — A U.S. Air Force pilot was reported to be safe after a single-seat F-35 fighter jet crashed Tuesday during a training exercise at a base in Alaska.

The pilot experienced an "inflight malfunction" but was able to eject from the aircraft, Col. Paul Townsend, commander of the 354th Fighter Wing, told a news conference. The plane crashed during the landing phase of the flight at Eielson Air Force Base, he said.

The pilot had declared an inflight emergency prior to the crash and was in stable condition and being evaluated at a medical facility, he said.

The crash, which occurred early Tuesday afternoon, caused significant damage to the aircraft, the Air Force said in a statement.

F-35 crashes and explodes in Alaska; pilot ejects safely

An Air Force pilot ejected safely after experiencing an “inflight malfunction” during a training exercise at Eielson Air Force Base, officials said.

www.airforcetimes.com

"Significant"? Yeah, buddy.

The Authorities are forever gilding the lily. My brother's National Guard company took 6 Chinooks to Afghanistan and brought back 5, one in a box. It sustained a--bet this--Hard Landing. So hard that the rotor tips dug into the dirt. Never heard whether that 47 was returned to flight status.

Then there were the Operational Pauses for B-2s and V-22s that lasted weeks, as I recall. Perish-forbid that anything should be GROUNDED!

 

[Thumpalumpacus]

The Authorities are forever gilding the lily. My brother's National Guard company took 6 Chinooks to Afghanistan and brought back 5, one in a box. It sustained a--bet this--Hard Landing. So hard that the rotor tips dug into the dirt. Never heard whether that 47 was returned to flight status.

Then there were the Operational Pauses for B-2s and V-22s that lasted weeks, as I recall. Perish-forbid that anything should be GROUNDED!

NSFW, language:

Spoiler

View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o25I2fzFGoY&t=3s

 

[Thumpalumpacus]

Ice buildup in the landing gear of a U.S. Air Force F-35A due to hydraulic fluid contaminated by water was the root cause of a crash at Eielson Air Force Base in Alaska in January, according to a recently released report on the mishap. The incident also highlights an automated ground-operation mode in the F-35's avionics, which wrongly determined that the jet had landed while it was still airborne because of how the ice had impacted the landing gear struts.

Pacific Air Forces (PACAF) released an unclassified report yesterday on the mishap in question, which occurred back on Jan. 28. A video, seen below, showing the F-35A tumbling vertically into the ground and then bursting into a fireball, quickly went viral at the time. The pilot, assigned to Eielson's 354th Fighter Wing, was able to eject and suffered minor injuries. The aircraft was a total loss, and the accident cost the Air Force approximately $196.5 million.

"After initial takeoff, the MA's [mishap aircraft's] nose landing gear (NLG) did not retract properly due to hydraulic fluid contaminated with water that froze, preventing full strut extension and resulting in the NLG being canted to the left. After running initial checklists, the NLG was still turned approximately 17 degrees to the left," the report's executive summary explains. "The MP [mishap pilot] initiated a conference call with Lockheed Martin engineers through the on-duty supervisor of flying (SOF). The MA held for approximately 50 minutes while the team developed a plan of action."

The canted nose wheel made it unsafe to attempt an emergency barrier engagement landing using the arresting gear installed of the main runway at Eielson.

"The MP accomplished two touch-and-go landings attempting to recenter the NLG wheel. While both attempts failed to center the NLG wheel, the right main landing gear (MLG) strut and then left MLG strut did not fully extend after takeoff due to ice forming inside the strut," it continues. "After the second touch-and-go, all valid Weight on Wheels (WoW) sensors indicated the MA was on the ground, and the MA transitioned to the 'on ground' flight control law (i.e., automated ground-operation mode causing the MA to operate as though it was on the ground when flying). However, because it was actually airborne, the MA was uncontrollable. The pilot successfully ejected and emergency responders were at the scene within a minute."

Dramatic F-35 Crash At Alaskan Air Base Caused By Iced-Up Landing Gear

Ice in the F-35's landing gear led the jet's flight computer to think it was on the ground when it wasn't.

www.twz.com