Key Points and Summary – An official investigation has revealed the bizarre cause of an F-35A crash in Alaska: the jet’s own computer thought it was on the ground.
-The incident began when contaminated hydraulic fluid froze, preventing the landing gear from properly retracting or extending.
-As the pilot spent nearly an hour on a conference call with engineers to troubleshoot, ice buildup caused the jet’s sensors to incorrectly signal that the aircraft had landed.
-This triggered the flight controls to switch to “on ground” mode while still airborne, making the $196.5 million fighter “uncontrollable” and forcing the pilot to eject.
More F-35 Drama
The U.S. Air Force released the findings of its investigation into a January 28 crash that saw an F-35A Lightning II fall from the sky and explode in a huge ball of fire.
The report described how a U.S. Air Force pilot spent almost an hour on an airborne conference call attempting to solve a problem with his aircraft, before he was forced to eject. The crash, which occurred at the Eielson Air Force Base in Fairbanks, Alaska, left the $196.5 million aircraft completely destroyed.
In a press release, the public affairs office of the 354th Fighter Wing said that the investigation determined that the aircraft’s nose landing gear did not properly retract due to contaminated hydraulic fluid.
“The investigation determined the aircraft’s nose landing gear did not retract properly due to hydraulic fluid contaminated with water freezing. After running multiple checklists and a conference call with engineers, the pilot’s attempts to center the nose landing gear failed,” the press release explained.
“During those attempts, ice formed inside the main landing gear struts, and they did not fully extend causing all valid Weight on Wheels sensors to indicate the aircraft was on the ground. The aircraft transitioned to “on ground” flight control law, despite being airborne, and became uncontrollable. The pilot successfully ejected, and emergency responders were at the scene within a minute.”
The pilot reportedly suffered “minor injuries” as a result of the ejection.
The report explained how the pilot went through a series of system checklists to address the problem before calling engineers from Lockheed Martin to determine why the problem could not be fixed.
Five engineers reportedly worked with the pilot as the aircraft approached the air base, including software, safety, and landing gear engineers. Two “touch and go” landings were attempted, during which the plane briefly landed in an effort to straighten the nose gear. Those attempts ultimately failed, however, preventing a safe landing.
Following the landing attempts, the fighter jet reportedly became “uncontrollable” as its onboard computer systems entered “automated ground-operation made,” forcing the pilot to eject.
The investigation also found a similar problem in another F-35 at the same base.
“I find by a preponderance of the evidence the cause of the mishap was water that froze in the NLG and MLG struts. The ice prevented the struts from full extension that led the WoW sensors to declare the aircraft was on the ground when it was airborne. I could not establish when the water was introduced into the landing gear struts,” the report concluded.
About the Author:
Jack Buckby is a British author, counter-extremism researcher, and journalist based in New York who writes frequently for National Security Journal. Reporting on the U.K., Europe, and the U.S., he works to analyze and understand left-wing and right-wing radicalization, and reports on Western governments’ approaches to the pressing issues of today. His books and research papers explore these themes and propose pragmatic solutions to our increasingly polarized society. His latest book is The Truth Teller: RFK Jr. and the Case for a Post-Partisan Presidency.
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