On Monday, the US military announced that it had located debris from the missing F-35 in South Carolina, which had disappeared after the pilot ejected for unknown reasons, and prompted incredulous comments online during the one-day investigation.
Debris from a stealth jet that went missing after the pilot ejected has been found, the US military said Monday, after a day in which failure to track the $80 million aircraft drew amazement and ridicule in equal measure.
The debris field from the F-35 was found in Williamsburg County, South Carolina, two hours northeast of Joint Base Charleston (JBC), officials said in a statement posted on X, formerly known as Twitter.
“Members of the community should avoid the area as the recovery team secures the debris field,” the statement read.
When the jet disappeared over South Carolina on Sunday, JBC issued a plaintive call on social media asking anyone who had information about it to call in.
Flight tracking sites showed several search aircraft focused on a wooded and farmland area near Stuckey, which is in Williamsburg County, about 75 miles (120.7 kilometers) north of Charleston, late Monday afternoon.
The F-35 Lightning II jet is coveted by US allies worldwide, especially Ukraine, with its distinctive shape and features that shield it from radar detection.
The pilot ejected for unknown reasons and parachuted safely into a North Charleston neighborhood on Sunday, leaving the jet flying in what some called a “zombie state.”
The disappearance of a highly advanced aircraft sparked incredulous comments online.
The shape of its airframe, including two angled stabilizers on the back, and the use of special materials make it harder for traditional radar to detect.
JBC spokesman Jeremy Huggins told the Washington Post that the jet’s transponder was not working and that its stealth capabilities added to the challenges of tracking it.
At least seven F-35s have been destroyed in previous crashes due to various causes.
Miroslava Salazar, with AFP
