Question:

Did the pilot of this F-35 survive? Nowhere did I
read anything mentioning the pilot.

According to a MarineCorpsTimes.com article dated 1/28/22:

“All injured Sailors have been reported to be recovered or in stable condition,” Langford said.

Three sailors – including the pilot and two other sailors – were evacuated to receive treatment for their injuries in Manila, Philippines. The other sailors were treated aboard the ship.

https://www.marinecorpstimes.c...-china-sea-are-real/



The pilot was able to eject after the plane cleared the ship, as evidenced by above pic of the F-35 in the water, sans canopy (and pilot), which was taken shortly after the incident, and subsequently leaked.

Thank You nhracecraft for info re pilot's well-being!

Lots of info and insight into this crash. Interesting to hear of the casualties, to include the emergency med-evac of the LSO due to traumatic head injury.

Important acronyms to know:
APC - Approach Power Compensation Mode
DFP - Delta Flight Path

^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
Ward Carroll aka "Mooch" does a great job with his YouTube channel.

quote:

Originally posted by corsair:
Lots of info and insight into this crash. Interesting to hear of the casualties, to include the emergency med-evac of the LSO due to traumatic head injury.

Important acronyms to know:
APC - Approach Power Compensation Mode
DFP - Delta Flight Path


[FLASH_VIDEO]<iframe frameborder="0" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/L4p2YtWylFo" title="YouTube video player" width="560"></iframe>[/FLASH_VIDEO]

I thought it was weird they found it was pilot error but they didn't take his wings. I would think if you were destined to ride a desk the rest of your career, they would take your wings.

You loose your wings for being reckless and careless, the accident while preventable had the pilot followed procedure, wasn't a result of doing something stupid. As Mooch and Hoser discussed, the FNAEB (Field Naval Aviator Evaluation Board) determined the pilot wasn't 'flat-hatting' or, goofing off. All indications sound like the pilot had a clean record up to that point; while his flying career is over, the aviation community still needs competent officers in other areas.

For those of you who don't have time to watch the fine 42 minute video posted by Corsair, this article offers a summary:

https://theaviationgeekclub.co...-lightning-ii-crash/

A few interesting things that caught my attention.

The pilot was not performing outside of acceptable norms. However due to the event that he initiated, he lacked sufficient time to complete all of the necessary functions required to safely come aboard ship. There was no indicator to him that a critical step had been missed.

This is a fairly new aircraft being flown by a nugget pilot. One who by Naval Tradition and the instruction of the flight lead, was compelled to perform at top level.

This event was foreseeable, however as with most aviation incidents, if only 1 other thing had gone right, would have likely been a safe trap.

I'm guessing that the reason the pilot retained his wings but was removed from active flight status may be:
(1) an acknowledgement that there were deficiencies that contributed to the incident
(2) He may have sustained injuries that would prevent a quick return to flight status.
(3) His reputation may have been sufficient to allow, in the future, a path back to flight status.

quote:

Originally posted by Rightwire:.

I'm guessing that the reason the pilot retained his wings but was removed from active flight status may be:
(1) an acknowledgement that there were deficiencies that contributed to the incident
(2) He may have sustained injuries that would prevent a quick return to flight status.
(3) His reputation may have been sufficient to allow, in the future, a path back to flight status.

I’m going with (2). The medics onboard said the pilot needed to go to shore or he was not likely to survive. This the 3 injured were transported some 500 nm onboard H-60 heloes from the Vincent, with the trip happening at under 100 ft above the ocean.

It sounds to me that he suffered an injury from which there is no way back flying status.

quote:

Originally posted by Sig2340:

I’m going with (2). The medics onboard said the pilot needed to go to shore or he was not likely to survive. This the 3 injured were transported some 500 nm onboard H-60 heloes from the Vincent, with the trip happening at under 100 ft above the ocean.

It sounds to me that he suffered an injury from which there is no way back flying status.

The "pilot" in this case is an LSO on the platform who was hit in the head by debris, not the pilot flying the F-35C. Discussion about it begins at 24 minutes in the Mooch's video.

quote:

Originally posted by Rightwire: There was no indicator to him that a critical step had been missed.

Just to split hairs, there were three indications in the HMD that he was not in the approach mode he thought he was. This is mentioned in the First Endorsement, page 11, paragraph 48 of the MIR.

quote:

Originally posted by Sig2340:
...This the 3 injured were transported some 500 nm onboard H-60 heloes from the Vincent, with the trip happening at under 100 ft above the ocean...

I understand the LSO's head injury required the low altitude. Why was the Osprey (COD model) unable to do this?