AFP |
A US F-35 stealth fighter plane was completely destroyed in a crash during training on Friday, officials said. The pilot safely ejected. The crash is the first of its kind for the troubled F-35 program, marking an unfortunate moment for the most expensive plane in history.
The Marine Corps said in a statement that a Marine Corps F-35 had crashed around 11:45 am (1615 GMT) outside Marine Corps Air Station Beaufort in South Carolina. “It’s a total loss,” one official said. Images on social media show a plume of black smoke rising above what users said was a crash site.
Once servicing and maintenance costs for the F-35 are factored in over the aircraft’s lifespan through 2070, overall program costs are expected to rise to $1.5 trillion.
The crashed plane was an F-35 “B” variant, used by the Marine Corps and capable of taking off from a short runway and landing vertically. The Air Force and Navy have their own models. The Beaufort County Sheriff’s Office said the pilot safely ejected and was being evaluated for injuries.
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Unit costs vary, but the price tag of F-35s is around $100 million each. Future production lots of F-35s are projected to drop slightly in price. The crash comes just one day after the US military first used the F-35, which has been beset with delays and cost overruns, in combat. Multiple Marine Corps F-35s struck Taliban targets in Afghanistan.
Launched in the early 1990s, the F-35 program is considered the most expensive weapons system in US history, with an estimated cost of some $400 billion and a goal to produce 2,500 aircraft in the coming years.
The pilot safely ejected. The crash is the first of its kind for the troubled F-35 program, marking an unfortunate moment for the most expensive plane in history.
Once servicing and maintenance costs for the F-35 are factored in over the aircraft’s lifespan through 2070, overall program costs are expected to rise to $1.5 trillion.
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Proponents tout the F-35’s radar-dodging stealth technology, supersonic speeds, close air support capabilities, airborne agility and a massive array of sensors giving pilots unparalleled access to information.
But the program has faced numerous delays, cost overruns and setbacks, including a mysterious engine fire in 2014 that led commanders to temporarily ground the planes. So far, the US military has taken delivery of 245 F-35s, most of them to the Air Force.
© Agence France-Presse