F-35B fighter jet crashed in the Mediterranean Sea

On 17 November 2021, when a state-of-the-art F-35B fighter jet accelerated to take off from the UK navy's HMS Queen Elisabeth aircraft carrier, no one could have predicted that the aircraft would soon be buried 2000 metres deep in the eastern Mediterranean. Although the loss of the £81.8 million aircraft was regrettable, it was a consolation that the pilot of the aircraft managed to survive the crash by using the ejection seat at the last moment.

HMS Queen Elisabeth aircraft carrier from whose runway the F-35B aircraft took off

Picture taken from the deck of the crashed aircraft before it sank into the water

When the Royal Navy pilot known as "Captain Hux" started to take off from the aircraft carrier with the F-35B aircraft ZM152, he did not know that the engine protective cover was forgotten inside the engine air intake compartment of the aircraft. The fighter jet, whose engine was therefore only able to generate 55 per cent of the thrust it was supposed to produce, could not reach the speed required to take off, despite approaching the end of the take-off ramp. The pilot pressed the ejection seat button before the aircraft fell off the ramp, and by a great stroke of luck, his parachute opened in mid-air and he fell onto the deck of the aircraft carrier. If he had fallen in front of the aircraft carrier, he might have been crushed by the ship. The pilot survived this accident with minor injuries. 

Picture of the engine air intake protection cover floating on the water

Picture of the downed aircraft taken by a rescue submarine at a depth of 2000 metres in the sea

When the aeroplane hit the water, it did not sink immediately. It sank after a while. The United Kingdom, which could not afford the possibility that this aircraft, which had the latest US stealth aircraft technology, would be recovered from the seabed by other states and its technology would be stolen, incurred the cost of recovering the aircraft from the sea (£ 2.3 million) in addition to £ 81.8 million. The newly published report of the accident provides information about the human factors that caused the engine air intake protection cover to be left on the engine before take-off. 

Picture of the crashed aircraft as it was being recovered from the sea 

Although the maintenance personnel in charge of removing the hatch from the aircraft removed the hatch from the right air intake compartment, they did not see the hatch in the left air intake compartment, probably because the hatch had entered the compartment. Even if this was a fighter aircraft, the pilot of the aircraft should have seen the left air intake hatch during the preflight check, during the external control. The accident investigation report also pointed out the importance of preflight check. With a cost of more than 100 million dollars, this accident once again emphasised the importance of preflight check in terms of flight safety. 

Reference:

www.navylookout.com