F-35 pilot bailed over South Carolina after flying in bad weather after Marine blunder
The reason behind the unnamed pilot's decision to bail out of the fighter jet without activating its tracking system may have stemmed from a "malfunction".
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An F-35 fighter pilot ejected over South Carolina after flying into bad weather as the Marine's decision-making during the heartstopping incident has come into question.
Exactly why the unnamed pilot opted to bail out as he flew the fighter jet remains unknown, but insiders say he was unable to activate the plane's tracking system.
According to a Charleston County Emergency Medical Services call, posted online by a meteorologist, the pilot said he was "unsure of where his place crashed" and claimed he "just lost it in the weather".
In the moments after he was ejected from the flight, the pilot landed in a North Charleston neighborhood.
He was then moved to a local hospital for treatment and has since been discharged.
Officials working for the Marines have yet to confirm details behind the incident, but referred to it as stemming from a "malfunction".
Richard Aboulafia, a military aviation expert and consultant, told the New York Post that the pilot was likely to have been operating the fighter jet without its tracking capabilities activated.
He said: "If you turned on the onboard device it would be easily trackable."
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The expert added: "But this is a stealth aircraft. If you don’t turn that particular device on it’s going to be hard to make contact. Most likely, he or she did not have a lot of time to react."
In an "unusual" decision, Aboulafia said, the military then decided to turn to the public for help - posting a Facebook update asking for information on where the jet landed.
He added: "The onboard device has not been turned on, it’s not being tracked.
"So it makes perfect sense that they’re going to ask for help from people in the area who might have seen a jet heading in their direction."
The plane landed, experts say, in South Carolina woodland around 60 miles away from where the pilot landed on the ground.
It was identified on Monday, with a one-mile stretch of road in Williamsburg County cordoned off.
Witnesses reported seeing the flight, including one couple who said it "almost inverted" above them.
Speaking on NBC News, Adrian Truluck said: "Our kids always give a little salute, so we said, 'Look at the plane. Oh my gosh, it's so low.'
"And it was kind of probably 100 feet above the tree tops, and almost going inverted."
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