F-35 strike fighter crashes in South Carolina
By: Jess Aloe, Oct. 1, 2018 (For the Burlington Free Press)
The F-35 program, due to bring strike fighters to Vermont next year, has suffered what is being called its first crash.
The U.S. Marine Corps issued a news release stating that a “2nd Marine Aircraft Wing F-35B belonging to Marine Fighter Attack Training Squadron 501 (VMFAT-501) stationed at Marine Corps Air Station Beaufort crashed in the vicinity of Beaufort, South Carolina at approximately 11:45 a.m.” on Friday.
The pilot ejected safely, the news release stated. No one was injured on the ground. The Marines said they worked Friday with local authorities to secure the crash site. The cause of the crash remains unknown and is under investigation.
F-35s scheduled to fly out of Burlington Airport in 2019:
The Vermont Air National Guard is scheduled to begin flying the F-35A out of Burlington International Airport in South Burlington sometime in 2019. The strike fighters would replace the squadron of F-16s that Guard pilots have flown for many years.