Full story
Miramar F-35B crash
A U.S. Marine Corps F-35B stealth fighter crashed near Marine Corps Air Station Miramar in San Diego on Friday after the pilot ejected before the jet went down in California.
“The jet went down Friday near the Miramar air base in San Diego.”
The Marine Corps said the pilot ejected, was transported to a local medical facility in stable condition for evaluation and treatment of non-life-threatening injuries.
Aerial video described a plume of black smoke rising from the wreckage in a dirt field, with multiple military and firefighting vehicles and people standing nearby.
San Diego Fire spokesperson Candace Hadley said firefighters were on scene to respond to a vegetation fire that sparked near the crash site, and she referred additional questions to Marine Corps Air Station Miramar.
The crash was described by the Marine Corps as a “Class A mishap,” the most severe mishap category used when damage totals more than $2 million, an aircraft is destroyed, or a service member is killed.
Pilot, witnesses, and response
1st Lt. Blake Starbuck, a spokesperson for the air base, said the pilot ejected from the aircraft and was later recovered, adding that the pilot was "en route to a medical facility."
ABC7 Bay Area reported that the aircraft crashed around 10 a.m. as it was on approach to the runway, short of the runway, and that the pilot ejected before impact.
Wade Lott, who watched from his truck as two jets descended toward the runway together, said, “It just blew up, it was crazy,” after the second jet began slowing down almost as if it were trying to hover.
Lott described the moment the pilot ejected when the jet was about 100 feet (30 m) above the ground, with the parachute deployed as they rose about 200 feet (61 m) into the air just in time.
In a separate account, a base spokesperson said the pilot ejected and was recovered, and more information would be made available shortly after the incident.
Costs, investigations, and context
The crash occurred at a base described as one of the country’s largest F-35B bases, and the Excelsior California report said the cause is under investigation.
“The cause is under investigation.”
The AP report said the U.S. Marine Corps, Navy and Air Force together have more than 630 F-35s, according to a 2024 analysis by the Government Accounting Office, and it estimated the overall F-35 program will cost roughly $2 trillion after the military buys more than 1,800 more jets.
NBC News said the F-35B assigned to the 3rd Marine Aircraft Wing of Marine Aircraft Group 11 crashed at Marine Corps Air Station Miramar around 10 a.m. PT, and that the crash sparked a fire in a field on the base.
In a separate framing, ABC7 Los Angeles quoted Luis Martinez saying, "Every year or so we're seeing one or two F-35 crashes," while also noting the F-35 is going to replace all of the fighter aircraft essentially in the U.S. inventory.
The AP report also pointed to other “Class A mishaps” involving F-35 aircraft since 2000, and said at least seven other military aircraft mishaps have happened in the U.S. this year, according to the Flight Safety Foundation’s Aviation Safety Network database.
