Bird collision caused U.S. F-35A stealth jet's 'belly landing' in Korea in Jan

[Source: MK DB]

A bird has caused engine malfunction in the Korean Air Force F-35 jet fighter that had to seek emergency belly-landing in January, according to the preliminary investigation in the incident by the Korean air force.

An eagle hit the F-35A stealth fighter’s air intake on the left side, penetrated a bulkhead into its weapons bay, and damaged a hydraulic duct and power supply wiring, affecting its navigation system and landing gear operation, the South Korean Air Force said in a statement on Thursday.

The collision happened when the fighter jet was making a low-altitude flight to enter a shooting range for an air-to-ground firing mission after taking off from an airbase in Cheongju, south of Seoul. After the collision with the bird, the Korean pilot of the F-35A made an emergency ‘belly landing’ or a gear-up landing, and he emerged unscathed.

“We will work with Lockheed Martin, the manufacturer of the fighter jet, to ensure normal landing to prevent a recurrence,” said the Air Force’s investigators.

Another fighter jet involving incident, the deadly KF-5E crash on Jan. 11, was attributed to two small holes in the fuel pipe. Fuel leaked through the holes, resulting in a fire in its engine during takeoff.

“The holes are presumed to have been caused by corrosion. The fire damaged the horizontal tail wing, making the jet out of control. The pilot tried to eject but failed,” said an official of the Air Force.

The Air Force plans to resume the fighter jets’ operations with the clarified probe results.

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