As per a report published in aerotime.aero, an F-35A Lightning II fighter belonging to the United States Air Force crashed in Utah. The F-35, made by defence giant Lockheed Martin is widely considered the most advanced and also the most expensive fighter jet in the world. The pilot of the fighter jet successfully ejected just ahead of the crash. The incident happened in October 19, 200 and was reported by the 388th Fighter Wing (388FW), which is stationed at the air base. 


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The 388FW was the first wing with an operational F-35A squadron, the 34th Fighter Squadron. “At approximately 6:15 p.m. an F-35 A Lightning II crashed at the north end of Hill Air Force Base runway,” the wing said in a tweet. “On and off base emergency crews responded immediately.” 


However, the 388FW has not revealed the exact squadron to which the crashed fighter jet belonged. According to Colonel Craig Andrle, commander of the 388FW, the Lockheed Martin F-35A Lightning was returning from a routine training mission,  


“All of us as pilots take every opportunity we have to mitigate the damage to anything on the ground, so I do know that the pilot made his best effort to avoid any buildings or anything on the ground prior to ejection,” Andrle said, as quoted by CNN. 


Although the F-35 is the most advanced fighter jet, it is the eighth reported crash of the jet since the fifth-generation fighter entered service in 2015. The last known fighter jet crash happed in early 2021, when the navy version of the jet - the US Navy F-35C crashed onto the deck of the aircraft carrier USS Carl Vinson.