More problems for the costly F-35 jet: Another just fell from the sky

A pilot in Alaska safely ejected from an aircraft on Tuesday before it plummeted to the earth, culminating in a fiery explosion at an Air Force base that was captured in dramatic video footage.

It was the latest crash involving the F-35 stealth fighter jet, the military’s most expensive weapon system that has been credited with revolutionizing modern American warfare but has also gained a reputation for its setbacks, high costs and safety concerns.

Officials have not said what exactly led to Tuesday’s crash, only that the pilot experienced an “in-flight malfunction.” The accident mirrors several similar crashes in recent years in which pilots were forced to eject from the stealth fighters.

Last May, a pilot in New Mexico was seriously injured after he ejected from an F-35 before the fighter jet crashed near an airfield in Albuquerque’s main airport. In September 2023, a pilot ejected from an F-35 and parachuted into a backyard in Charleston, South Carolina. The jet flew unmanned for several minutes before it crashed into a field some 60 miles away.

The manufacturer of the jet’s ejection system used Tuesday’s accident to brag about its reliability: “The pilot successfully ejected using the Martin-Baker US16E seat. This was the 10th successful ejection from the F-35,” said a post from the official X account of Martin-Baker, the British manufacturing company.

The F-35 program is estimated to top at least $2 trillion over the coming decades, the U.S. Government Accountability Office said in a report last year, citing the U.S. Department of Defense.