The u.s has sent at least four military aircraft to recover the top-secret
components of its crashed F-35C fighter jet in the south china sea, a
Beijing-based think-tank said.
Salvage worked for the crashed F-35C seems to be beginning the SCS probing
initiative, SCSPI tweeted on saturday citing satellite images.
This comes after the u.s navy revealed last monday that an f-35C lightning
to its most advanced stealth fighter jet had fallen into the sea after a
landing mishap on the USS Carl Vinson aircraft carrier during routine
operations.
At least four u.s air force CV-22B Osprey tilt-rotor aircraft believed to
have been deployed from american bases in japan and the philippines were
spotted heading to the area where the carrier exercises had taken place,
SCSPI said in its twitter post.
The salvage of the crashed F-35C seems to be beginning. today at least four
USAF CV-22B Osprey from the philippines and japan are heading to the area
where the carrier exercises had taken place.
Earlier on saturday the japanese coast guard issued a navigational warning
that salvage operations were being carried out in an area in the northern
part of the south china sea until further notice. This comes days after a
photo of an F-35 floating on the water with an open cockpit canopy appeared
on reddit and soon began to be circulated online.
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On friday, the US navy confirmed that the leaked photo and a related video
shared on twitter did show the F-35c hitting the USS Carl Vinson flight deck
and floating in south china. Seven military personnel including the pilot
who ejected safely were injured in the incident.
The u.s navy said it was making recovery operations arrangements for the
stricken aircraft. The F-35 fleet with three variants including the
carrier-based F-35C represents the most sophisticated military aircraft in
the world.
Designed to utilize stealth technology and systems integration, it is also
america's most expensive weapon system with an average price tag of over 100
million us dollars each.
According to the center for arms control and non-proliferation, the F-35
fleet is the second largest in the u.s air force inventory after the F-16.
This is the second crash involving a Lockheed Martin F-35 jet in just over 2
months.
In november a british F-35 be crashed into the mediterranean following a
slow takeoff from the royal navy aircraft carrier HMS Queen Elizabeth.
The u.s crash also sparked media speculation on whether china now identified
as a major strategic competitor by the pentagon would race to recover the
jet for access to stealth technology.
But beijing has rejected such claims. we have no interest in their plane,
chinese foreign ministry spokesman Zhao legion said on thursday.
Meanwhile chinese military observers said salvage operations might prove
difficult because of the complicated underwater conditions in the south
china sea. The resource-rich south china sea is crisscrossed by busy
shipping lanes and rival territorial claims from china and its southeast
asian neighbors.
The renewed u.s focus on the indo-pacific to counter china's growing
influence has also set up the waterways as a major arena of great power
rivalry. Both sides have stepped up their military presence in the
strategically important region and the us has sharply scaled up its freedom
of navigation operations in international waters there.
Earlier this month, the u.s indo-pacific command announced that its USS
Abraham Lincoln and USS Carl Vinson aircraft carrier strike groups had
carried out joint operations in the south china sea on january 23rd to
strengthen maritime integrated at sea operations and combat readiness.
Rear Admiral Dan Martin, commander of the strike group led by the USS Carl
Vinson said the operations were part of the u.s commitment to deterring
those who challenge the shared vision of a free and open indo-pacific now
and into the long-term future.
Two weeks ago the Chinese People's Liberation Army (PLA) accused the u.s of
provocative actions that could lead to serious consequences, saying it had
tracked the guided missile destroyer USS Benfold sailing through the
disputed paracel islands, known as Shisha islands in China.
The u.s navy denied the claims, saying that its worship's passage was
innocent its freedom of navigation operation in accordance with
international law and that such operations would continue.
