Before ejecting from a US Air Force F-35 fighter jet that crashed in Alaska in January, the pilot spent nearly an hour on a mid-air conference call with Lockheed Martin engineers attempting to resolve the issue, according to an accident report released this week.
According to the CNN-published report, the incident began shortly after take-off when the pilot attempted to retract the landing gear. The gear failed to retract fully, and when he lowered it again, the nose wheel locked at an angle to the left.
After running through system checklists, the pilot initiated a mid-air conference call with five engineers of Lockheed Martin, the plane's manufacturer. They included: a senior software engineer, a flight safety engineer, and three landing-gear specialists. The call lasted 50 minutes as they tried to troubleshoot the malfunction.
The pilot then attempted two “touch-and-go” landings - brief contacts with the runway designed to realign the jammed nose wheel. Instead, the manoeuvres caused further damage, leaving both the left and right main landing gears frozen and unable to extend for a safe landing.
At that stage, the F-35’s sensors mistakenly registered that the jet was on the ground, triggering a switch to “automated ground-operation mode.” This left the aircraft effectively “uncontrollable,” as its systems responded as though it was on the ground, rather than flying.
With no other options left, the pilot ejected. The jet dropped straight down and exploded in a fireball.
The January 28 crash at Eielson Air Force Base in Alaska's Fairbanks was recorded in a video that showed the aircraft dropping straight down and exploding in a fireball. The pilot suffered only minor injuries.
A US Air Force investigation later determined that the crash was caused by ice in the hydraulic lines of the nose and main landing gears, which prevented them from functioning properly.
According to the CNN-published report, the incident began shortly after take-off when the pilot attempted to retract the landing gear. The gear failed to retract fully, and when he lowered it again, the nose wheel locked at an angle to the left.
After running through system checklists, the pilot initiated a mid-air conference call with five engineers of Lockheed Martin, the plane's manufacturer. They included: a senior software engineer, a flight safety engineer, and three landing-gear specialists. The call lasted 50 minutes as they tried to troubleshoot the malfunction.
F-35 mishap at Eielson AFB, AK.
— TheIntelFrog (@TheIntelFrog) January 29, 2025
Pilot appears to have ejected. https://t.co/7LpsoyJGKF pic.twitter.com/lNWIgqkVHV
The pilot then attempted two “touch-and-go” landings - brief contacts with the runway designed to realign the jammed nose wheel. Instead, the manoeuvres caused further damage, leaving both the left and right main landing gears frozen and unable to extend for a safe landing.
At that stage, the F-35’s sensors mistakenly registered that the jet was on the ground, triggering a switch to “automated ground-operation mode.” This left the aircraft effectively “uncontrollable,” as its systems responded as though it was on the ground, rather than flying.
With no other options left, the pilot ejected. The jet dropped straight down and exploded in a fireball.
The January 28 crash at Eielson Air Force Base in Alaska's Fairbanks was recorded in a video that showed the aircraft dropping straight down and exploding in a fireball. The pilot suffered only minor injuries.
A US Air Force investigation later determined that the crash was caused by ice in the hydraulic lines of the nose and main landing gears, which prevented them from functioning properly.
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