A U.S. Marine Corps pilot is recovering in stable condition after ejecting from an F-35B stealth fighter moments before it crashed on Friday near Marine Corps Air Station Miramar in San Diego, California.
Military officials confirmed the pilot sustained non-life-threatening injuries and was promptly transported to a local hospital for evaluation and care.
“The pilot ejected, was transported to a local medical facility in stable condition for evaluation and treatment of non-life-threatening injuries,” the Marine Corps stated in an updated release.
Aerial footage from a news helicopter showed dark smoke towering over the crash site in an open dirt field. Emergency responders, military personnel, and fire crews rushed to the scene to secure the wreckage and extinguish a small brush fire ignited by the crash.
Eye-witness Wade Lott, 36, observed the incident while commuting to his job at a local concrete company. He recalled seeing two jets making their approach toward the runway when the second plane unexpectedly lost speed.
“It just blew up, it was crazy,” Lott said, describing the scene from his truck.
According to Lott, the second aircraft seemed to be attempting a hover maneuver during its descent. He witnessed the pilot eject approximately 100 feet in the air, with the parachute deploying as the pilot was propelled upward.
“The jet hit the ground right next to another plane,” Lott added. “It plowed into the runway and just blew up.”
San Diego Fire Department spokesperson Candace Hadley noted that city firefighters were dispatched to combat the surrounding vegetation fire, referring further inquiries about the plane to Miramar officials.
Marine Corps Air Station Miramar is historically famous for hosting the Navy’s elite fighter pilot school featured in the original Top Gun film, earning it the moniker “Fightertown USA,” before the program relocated to Nevada in 1996.
The F-35 fleet—comprising variants for the Air Force, Navy, and Marine Corps—numbered over 630 aircraft according to a 2024 Government Accountability Office report. The F-35B variant, known for its short takeoff and vertical landing capabilities, carries an estimated price tag of $109 million per unit, with the total lifetime cost of the F-35 program projected around $2 trillion.
The Marine Corps has categorized the crash as a “Class A mishap”—the military’s highest severity tier, reserved for incidents involving fatalities, complete destruction of an aircraft, or property damage exceeding $2 million.
Despite the crash, defense analysts still consider the F-35 among the military’s premier fighter jets, pointing out that fatal incidents have remained rare since its 2015 entry into service.
An official investigation is currently underway to determine the exact cause of the crash.