How Did a Fighter Jet Go Missing?
Summary from AllSides News Team
Questions remain about the F-35 fighter jet that was found destroyed in South Carolina on Monday after the pilot safely ejected.
What We Know: The jet's pilot left it on autopilot before safely ejecting at an approximate altitude of 1,000 feet on Sunday and landing in a residential area. The military then asked for the public's help in locating the plane, suggesting they had lost any tracking capabilities. Searchers discovered the plane's wreckage roughly two hours north of Joint Base Charleston. The Marines say the plane's loss will cost around $100 million. No injuries were reported.
What We Don't Know: It's unclear why the pilot ejected or why the F-35 crashed.
Key Quotes: "The mishap is currently under investigation, and we are unable to provide additional details to preserve the integrity of the investigative process," the Marine Corps said Monday after the search concluded. The Marines also said the pilot "experienced a malfunction and was forced to eject," but offered no further detail.
How the Media Covered it: Sources across the spectrum covered the incident as a top story this week. Many across the spectrum focused on how the incident happened over a heavily populated area and could have resulted in significant damage and loss of life.
Featured Coverage of this Story
From the Center
Debris found from F-35 jet in South Carolina after US pilot ejected
Military officials have found the debris of an F-35 military jet that went missing after the pilot ejected over South Carolina.
The wreckage of the $100m (£80m) plane - which disappeared on Sunday afternoon - was discovered in rural Williamsburg County, said authorities.
The pilot ejected from the cockpit and parachuted to safety in a North Charleston neighbourhood.
The public had been asked to help find the jet.
In a statement on Monday, military officials said the debris was found "two hours north-east of Joint Base Charleston".
From the Right
The mystery of the missing F-35
It was one of the weirdest stories in years. The military lost a state-of-the-art F-35 fighter jet, last seen flying pilotless over North Charleston, South Carolina, and was asking the public for help in finding the $80 million plane. As Rep. Nancy Mace (R-SC) asked: "How in the hell do you lose an F-35?"
The military has not been particularly transparent about what happened. We know the plane was a Marine jet that took off Sunday from Marine Corps Air Station Beaufort, about 70 miles southwest of Charleston. We know that...
From the Left
New details in F-35 'mishap' as mystery remains about how jet was lost
The debris field found outside Charleston, South Carolina, on Monday is confirmed to be the remains of an F-35 that went missing on Sunday after a reported "mishap" or "malfunction" in which the jet's pilot ejected from the craft, according to a Marine Corps official.
The overall recovery process for the debris and the F-35B Lightning II has begun, the official told ABC News in a pair of statements.
The official would not specify what point in the recovery and investigation process the Marine Corps is in but said the process is ongoing....
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