Seven US Navy servicemen were injured as a result of an emergency landing of a fifth-generation F-35 fighter jet on the Carl Vinson aircraft carrier in the South China Sea.
The plane made an "unsuccessful landing," Fox News reports, citing the command of the American fleet. The pilot ejected and was rescued by helicopter. Three sailors from the Carl Vinson crew were taken to a hospital in the Philippines, four more received medical care on the ship.
This accident was the first for the F-35C, the ship's version of the fighter, and the second F-35 disaster in the coming year, Defense World notes. On January 4, the F-35A of the South Korean Air Force collided with a bird and made an emergency landing "on its belly" because the landing gear failed. In November 2021, a British F-35 crashed from the aircraft carrier Queen Elizabeth in the Mediterranean Sea.
There are currently two nuclear-powered aircraft carriers of the US Navy in the South China Sea: Abraham Lincoln and Carl Vinson. This is the largest demonstration of force off the coast of China in recent times.
Anton Valagin
