Flashback to 17 November 2021, when there was an incident of the crash of a British F-35B Lightning II stealth fighter jet in the Mediterranean Sea. The US$130 million Lockheed Martin fighter jet crashed shortly after taking off from the aircraft carrier HMS Queen Elizabeth.
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Because it is considered a strategic defense equipment which contains sensitive material, the evacuation of the carcass must be carried out with the aim of investigating and securing the carcass from attempts to steal data by the opposing party.
Thanks to a joint operation between the British Navy and a team of divers from the US Navy, on December 12, 2021, the wreck of the F-35B from a depth of 2,000 meters at the bottom of the Mediterranean Sea was successfully raised to the surface. And recently it was revealed, that the cost of removing the wreckage of the F-35B cost 2.63 million pounds (about US $ 3.35 million).
Quoted from aviationweek.com (11/8/2023), investigations into British F-35B incidents in the Mediterranean Sea have raised questions about equipment and resource management and program safety issues affecting personnel.
In a long-awaited 148-page investigative report on the F-35B ZM152, it was concluded that it was caused after one of the air intakes, designed to protect the engine from foreign objects, became stuck in the intake tract and reduced engine power. because the plane was taking off.
The panel of inquiry identified possible contributing factors to the crash and raised wider concerns with Britain's approach to starting operations. The incident made no less than 46 recommendations.
The investigation found that the presence of an intake blank led to a minimum 17% deficit between the thrust requested and delivered during take-off roll. While the pilot asked for 38,000 lb of power through the throttle, it was only 31,500 lb. sent,.
When the plane takes off and loses power from the engine, the pilot then chooses to abort the take-off when the plane achieves a ski jump on the carrier. He reduced the plane's throttle to a stop and slammed on the brakes. When the plane went uphill, the pilot decided to eject from the plane.
In his closing remarks, Air Marshal Steve Shell, Director General of the UK's Defense Security Authority, said F-35 operations had not reached "critical mass", with squadrons unable to support each other's deployment without compromising their own operations.
The report stated that the combination of winds, forward movement of the ship and swing of the parachute resulted in the pilot landing on the deck, six feet to the right of the take-off ramp, three feet back from the forward edge of the runway. the deck, while the parachute canopy caught on the ramp end light shroud and flight deck netting on the upper starboard side of the ramp.