The pilot of a US Navy F-35C Lightning II ejected during a "landing accident" aboard the aircraft carrier USS Carl Vinson (CVN-70) in the South China Sea, Monday. . Seven people were injured.
The fighter was performing routine flight operations in the South China Sea when it crashed on landing, informed the navy tonight. The pilot was rescued by a helicopter and is in stable condition.
Seven sailors on deck were injured; three were evacuated from the vessel and taken to a medical treatment facility in the Philippines, in stable condition. The other four were treated by medical personnel on board the ship. Three have already been released.
The Marine did not give details as to the state of the aircraft, but states that the accident is already under investigation. The fighter belonged to the VFA-147 Argonauts squadron, assigned to Carrier Air Wing (CVW) 2. This is the first F-35C unit to participate in an operational trip, which had start in August 2021.
The USS Carl Vinson is the first US aircraft carrier to operate with the US Navy's integrated air wing, also called the Wing of the Future. The big difference is that the familiar F/A-18E/F, EA-18G, E-2D Hawkeye and Seahawk helicopters are operating alongside the F-35C and CMV-22B Osprey.
The CVN-70 was conducting operations alongside another US aircraft carrier, the USS Abraham Lincoln, which also has an integrated air wing. The movement of Washington's two nuclear vessels - along with amphibious landing ships - in a clear demonstration of power, may have been a "trigger" for China, which sent dozens of planes to Taiwan's air identification zone.
This is the second F-35 crash in 20 days. On January 04th, a South Korean Air Force F-35A made a belly landing after colliding with a bird.
