The US Navy recovers its latest fighter jet after it crashed in the China Sea
The US Navy says it has recovered an F-35C Lightning 2 aircraft that crashed while trying to land on an aircraft carrier in the South China Sea in January.
The Seventh Fleet said that a robotic submarine attached ropes to the long-range attack stealth fighter, which was then lifted from a depth of 3,780 meters using the ship's crane.
The Seventh Fleet added that the multi-million dollar plane was carrying out "routine flights" from the aircraft carrier "USS Carl Vinson" when it crashed on January 24.
Leaked footage showed the plane reaching too low to land, hitting the back of the ship's deck first and then skidding and turning onto the surface before falling into the sea.
The pilot managed to eject and six sailors were injured on the aircraft carrier.
The fleet indicated that the wreckage will be delivered to a nearby base to be studied for evidence of the cause of the accident and may be sent to the United States. The location of the accident was not disclosed.
The aircraft carrier suffered surface damage and was able to resume operations, and the "Carl Vinson" and its strike group returned to San Diego on February 14 after eight months of deployment.
The US Navy said earlier that the single-engine fighter plane, the newest aircraft in the US Navy fleet, crashed on the aircraft carrier "USS Carl Vinson" during routine operations, and Navy officials said the warplane was worth $100 million.
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