A South Carolina couple witnessed a fighter jet flying in an inverted position before it crashed nearby, raising questions about what caused the accident.
Adrian and Stephen Truluck were celebrating their son’s 7th birthday on Sunday afternoon when they looked up and saw the jet flying upside down, about 100 feet above the treetops.
“It was probably three quarters of the way inverted,” Stephen Truluck said. “We could see the canopy” of the plane.
The couple didn’t think much of it at the time, but after learning that an F-35 fighter jet had gone missing and that a debris field had been found just miles from their home, they realized what they had seen.
The Marine Corps is investigating the crash, but it’s still unclear why the pilot ejected from the aircraft and why the jet appeared to have continued flying undetected.
The Trulucks said they called the military to report what they had seen, but believe authorities had already zeroed in on the crash site.
No injuries were reported on the ground.
The crash is a reminder of the dangers of flying fighter jets, and it raises questions about the safety of the F-35 program. The F-35 is the most expensive military aircraft ever built, and it has been plagued by technical problems since it was first deployed.
The crash is also a reminder of the importance of safety procedures for military pilots. The pilot in this case was able to eject safely, but it’s still unclear why he ejected in the first place.
The Marine Corps is investigating the crash, and it’s likely to be some time before we know all of the details. But in the meantime, this is a sobering reminder of the dangers of flying fighter jets.