Pilot ejects from fighter jet after intense landing kerfuffle
Dallas, Texas - A pilot of a military F35 B model jet self-ejected after the plane accidentally malfunctioned while landing at a military base, and the whole thing was caught on video.
Prior to the ejection, the unidentified pilot was attempting a vertical landing in a a Lockheed Martin F-35B Lightning II fighter jet at the Naval Air Station Joint Reserve Base in Fort Worth.
A video showing the plane's attempted landing has been making its rounds on Twitter, and people can't help but speculate about just what went wrong.
From the looks of the clip, it appears that, after the jet's wheels made contact with the runway, the jet itself bounced off the ground a few times. Moments later, the front wheel seems to fly off, leading the grounded jet to nosedive before it starts to smoke and spin out of control.
Once the jet stopped spinning, the pilot is seen ejecting themselves from the cockpit in soaring fashion. The video shows the moment they ejected themselves, sending the pilot – along with their seat – flying, as a parachute appears before the pilot abrasively crashes into the ground.
Per NBCDFW, Lockheed Martin issued a statement regarding the incident: "We are aware of the F-35B crash on the shared runway at Naval Air Station Joint Reserve Base in Fort Worth and understand that the pilot ejected successfully," adding, "Safety is our priority, and we will follow appropriate investigation protocol."
The company did not offer any updates on the pilot's condition, but a Pentagon spokesperson confirmed that at the time of the crash, the aircraft was being flown by a US government pilot.
Cover photo: Collage: Screenshot/Twitter/@cbs11doug