Posted on 05/29/2024 5:47:21 AM PDT by V_TWIN
ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (AP) — A military fighter jet on its way to an Air Force base in California crashed Tuesday near the international airport in New Mexico’s largest city, sending up a large plume of smoke and injuring the pilot.
The pilot, the only person on board, was able to escape after crashing around 2 p.m. on a hillside on the south side of Albuquerque’s airport and was taken to a hospital with serious injuries, according to the city’s fire department.
U.S. manufacturer Lockheed Martin identified the downed plane as an F-35 that left Fort Worth, Texas, earlier Tuesday and was headed to Edwards Air Force Base near Los Angeles. A spokesperson for Lockheed said in an email to The Associated Press that the fighter jet crashed after the pilot stopped to refuel at Kirtland Air Force Base in New Mexico.
Neither of the Air Force bases immediately responded to requests for more information.
(Excerpt) Read more at apnews.com ...
A, B, or C? Odds are it’s an A.
Pilot’s name? Background?
According to this a B model
A little early for all that I would imagine
At about $85 million per pop, next time consider flying United, or Delta, or American
Sarc off
It came as a big surprise to me that a fighter jet has to stop for gas enroute from TX to CA.
Yes, he’s back on the ground...............
Maybe the ground crew were told “put mo’ gas in”. Instead of JP-8 they put in Mogas (mil spec gasoline).
Happened many times before
“Instead of JP-8 they put in Mogas (mil spec gasoline).”
I’m no expert but wouldn’t the wrong fuel cause a noticeable change in engine behavior while they still had time to abort the takeoff.
Or maybe a warning light?
The article doesn't specify whether the plane departed the Lockheed facility in Fort Worth or from the Naval Air Station Joint Reserve Base Fort Worth.
My suspicion is that it's tied to the ongoing problems with the acceptance of the F-35s from Lockheed. The plane likely departed the Lockheed plant in Fort Worth without a full fuel load.
https://www.defenseone.com/business/2024/05/f-35s-are-piling-lockheed-tarmacs-presenting-unique-risks-pentagon/396646/
F-35s are piling up on Lockheed tarmacs, presenting ‘unique’ risks to the Pentagon: The program is trying to quash bugs that force pilots to reboot in midair, GAO says.
By Audrey Decker
May 16, 2024
The Pentagon has refused delivery of so many F-35s that Lockheed Martin is running out of places to put them, according to a new report from a government watchdog agency. Last July, the government stopped accepting new F-35s because of hardware and software delays with Technology Refresh-3, a $1.8-billion effort to enable new capabilities for the jet. The number of jets accumulating outside Lockheed's plant is “grossly delinquent,” Rep. Rob Wittman, R-Va., chairman of the House Armed Services tactical air and land forces subcommittee, told reporters Wednesday. “We know one thing for certain: it's going to be at least over 100 aircraft stacked up on the tarmac,” Wittman said. The GAO report did not say how many aircraft are currently parked, saying the Defense Department deemed that figure “unsuitable for public release.”
“It is unique for so many critical DOD aircraft to be waiting for DOD acceptance, instead of stored at lower densities across many military locations throughout the world. This creates unique financial and schedule risks to DOD,” GAO said.
CONTAMINATED FUEL?????
There’s more to this story. Edwards Air Force Base is for testing, not operational wings. This aircraft was likely being ferried from the Lockheed plant in Fort Worth to Edwards Air Force Base for testing.
Uh, ABQ International shares runways with Kirtland AFB so, “near” works. Reporters.
“Piling up”?
Apologies for choice of source..I probably should have shopped around a little. 😏
“Pilot’s name? Background?”
CLEARLY it’s DEI at work again. No doubt.
The engine might run a little hot.
😂👍. These days, these ‘journalists’. Tell them to diagram a sentence for us. Crickets..........
in the posted AP story but:
"The pilot – who ejected before impact..."
In the KOB4 story you posted.
Big difference. 99.999 percent chance the AP got the story wrong.
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