A Japanese F-35 stealth fighter jet with one pilot on board disappeared from radar while on a training mission over the Pacific on Tuesday night, the defense ministry said. The disappearance prompted Japan's military to ground its remaining fleet of the U.S.-made warplanes.

The stealth fighter went missing about half an hour after takeoff as it flew about 84 miles east of Misawa, northeastern Japan, a ministry spokeswoman said. It was not immediately clear if it had it crashed, and the spokeswoman said Japan's forces were "still trying to search for the aircraft."

The fate of the pilot was not immediately clear. The Self-Defence Forces and coastguard dispatched vessels to carry out rescue operations, national broadcaster NHK added.

Japan grounds its fleet

Japanese news agency Kyodo quoted Defense Minister Takeshi Iwaya on Tuesday as saying the country's military was grounding its 12 other F-35As while the disappearance was investigated.

An F-35 fighter aircraft of the Japan Air Self-Defense Force takes part in a military review at the Ground Self-Defence Force's Asaka training ground in Asaka, Saitama prefecture, Oct. 14, 2018. Getty

Japan, a close U.S. ally, started deploying its U.S.-developed F-35As, a fifth-generation fighter jet made by U.S. aerospace giant Lockheed Martin, in January of 2018.

Each one of the state-of-the-art combat aircraft costs more than $90 million.

According to Kyodo, Japan has plans to purchase and deploy 105 F-35As in the coming years.

Previous problems with the F-35

On Sept. 28, a U.S. Marines F-35B crashed down onto an uninhabited marsh island near the Grays Hill community in South Carolina. As CBS News national security correspondent David Martin reported, it was the first crash of the U.S. military's newest and most expensive aircraft.

About two weeks later the Pentagon temporarily grounded all F-35 fighter jets in service for the various branches of the U.S. military to inspect the fleet in the wake of the. The Air Force, Navy and Marine Corps fly different versions of the stealth fighter.

Is the F-35 worth it?

The grounding order involved a potentially bad fuel tube and affected more than 250 U.S.-owned jets, as well as nearly 100 that belonged to other nations including Britain. About half the F-35s were believed to have the faulty tube, including aircraft owned by the Air Force, Navy and Marine Corps.

Most of the planes were back in service quickly after the problematic fuel tubes were replaced.

As Martin reported for "60 Minutes" in 2014, the Pentagon started buying the F-35 before testing it, breaking the traditional "fly-before-you-buy" rule of weapons acquisition in the rush to stay ahead of China and Russia's technological advances.

That rush, however, left taxpayers paying the price for mistakes that weren't caught before production began.

A Pentagon document obtained by "60 Minutes" catalogued the "flawed . . . assumptions" and "unrealistic . . . estimates" that led to a $163 billion cost overrun on what was already the highest priced weapons system in history.</s>April 9 (UPI) -- A Japanese F-35A stealth fighter jet disappeared from radar while over the Pacific Ocean on Tuesday, prompting defense officials to ground the aircraft model, the Air Self-Defense Force said.

The F-35A disappeared during a training exercise after taking off from Misawa Air Base in northeastern Japan. The pilot, a major in his 40s, was flying with three other aircraft near Aomori prefecture when he lost contact.

Officials are unsure whether the plane crashed and, if it did, whether the pilot was able to eject from the aircraft.

"The cause [of the disappearance] is unknown," Defense Minister Takeshi Iwaya said.

Planes, helicopters and warships were searching the area for signs of the pilot or wreckage.

The Defense Ministry "will put all our efforts to save the life [of the pilot] first," Iwaya said.

He added that military officials have suspended further flights using F-35As. The Japanese air force began using the aircraft in March; it has 13 in its fleet.</s>TOKYO: Japan’s 12 remaining F-35A fighter jets will be grounded for the time being, defence minister Takeshi Iwaya said on Tuesday (Apr 9), after one such jet crashed into the Pacific Ocean during a training mission.

Iwaya said the aircraft sent an “aborting practice” signal and disappeared from radar.

The fighter jet went missing around 7.30pm on Tuesday. It had lost contact 30 minutes after taking off from Misawa Air Base in Aomori Prefecture with three other aircraft, according to AFP.

It is the first F-35A jet to have crashed.



On Wednesday, search and rescue teams found wreckage from the fighter jet. However, the pilot is still missing.

READ: Wreckage confirmed to be crashed Japanese F-35 fighter, pilot still missing

An official for the Defence Ministry said the pilot had 3,200 hours of flight time, with 60 hours on the F-35.

The aircraft crashed in waters that reach a depth of about 1,500m, making recovery difficult, the official added.

"We'll need to cooperate with the US forces and I believe arrangements are being made for this," Iwaya said, adding the priority was on determining the cause of the accident.

Japan is deploying F-35As, each of which costs more than 10 billion yen (US$90 million), to replace the ageing F-4 fighter jet.

The jet was one of 13 F-35As deployed at the base, according to a defence official. It was less than a year old.</s>TOKYO – A Japanese air force F-35 stealth fighter crashed in the Pacific Ocean during a night training flight and parts of the jet were recovered, the defense ministry said Wednesday.

The pilot is still missing. The F-35A stealth jet disappeared from radar while flying off the eastern coast of Aomori. Parts of the jet were found late Tuesday, the Air Self-Defense Force said.

It went missing about half an hour after taking off from the Misawa air base with three other F-35As.

Defense Minister Takeshi Iwaya told reporters the cause of the crash was not immediately known. He said 12 other F-35s at the Misawa base would be grounded.

The pilot is a man in his 40s, Iwaya said.

Japan started deploying the expensive U.S.-made F-35s since last year, part of its plan to bolster its defense spending and weapons capability in the coming years to counter potential threats from North Korea and China.

Under guidelines approved in December, Prime Minister Shinzo Abe’s government plans to buy 147 F-35s, including 105 F-35As, costing about 10 billion yen ($90 million) each.</s>TOKYO (Reuters) - Japan’s Air Self-Defence Force said on Tuesday that an F-35 fighter jet disappeared from radar as it was flying over the Pacific Ocean.

The jet was flying some 135 km (84 miles) east of northern Japan at about 7:27 p.m. (1027 GMT) when it dropped off radar, the military said.</s>Search and rescue teams found wreckage from a Japanese F-35 stealth fighter that crashed over the Pacific Ocean close to northern Japan, but the pilot remains missing, authorities said on Wednesday.

The aircraft, less than one-year-old, was the first F-35 to be assembled in Japan and was only in the air for 28 minutes on Tuesday, a defense official said. It is only the second F-35 to crash in the two-decades it has been flying.

The advanced, single-seat jet was flying about 135 km (84 miles) east of the Misawa air base in Aomori Prefecture at about 7:27 p.m. (1027 GMT) on Tuesday when it disappeared from radar, the Air Self Defense Force said. "We recovered the wreckage and determined it was from the F-35," a spokesman for the Air Self Defence Force (ASDF) said, adding that the pilot of the aircraft was still missing.

The aircraft was at the front of a group of four planes out for training maneuvers when it sent an “aborting practice” signal and then disappeared from the radar, Defence Minister Takeshi Iwaya told reporters. "We’ll need to cooperate with the US forces and I believe arrangements are being made for this," Iwaya said, adding the priority was on determining the cause of the accident.

Japan has a total of 13 F-35s, including the one that crashed. The crashed aircraft was the fifth F-35 delivered to the ASDF, but the first assembled by Mitsubishi Heavy Industries in Japan</s>Step aside Boeing, it's Lockheed Martin's turn to bask in the spotlight for at least a few hours.

Earlier today, a Japanese F-35 stealth fighter jet with one pilot on board unexpectedly disappeared from radar while on a training mission over the Pacific on Tuesday night, Kyodo reported citing the defense ministry. The fighter jet went missing at around 7:27 p.m. (1027 GMT) as it was flying 135 km (84 miles) east of Misawa in northeastern Japan, a ministry spokeswoman said.

It was not immediately clear if it had crashed, the spokesperson said, adding: “We are still trying to search for the aircraft.”

The fate of the pilot was also not immediately clear.

According to Japan's NHK, the plane lost contact about 30 minutes after taking off from Misawa Air Base, and added that the Self-Defence Forces and coastguard dispatched vessels to carry out rescue operations, NHK added.

What is embarrassing, is that according to the Defense Report, Japan’s first F-35A fighter squadron based at Misawa became operational on March 29.

As a result of the unexplained, and first ever, disappearance of the stealth fighter, Kyodo also reports that Japan will ground its entire fleet of F-35s until there is more clarity on what happened today.</s>Japan has 13 operational F-35s, with nearly 150 more on order. The planes are based with the 302nd Squadron at the Misawa Air Base in Aomori, northern Japan.

A Japan Air Self-Defence Force spokesman has confirmed to Sputnik that one of its F-35s has gone missing with one pilot said to be on board. “It disappeared from radars,” the spokesman said, adding that a search for the plane is underway.

Earlier, Japanese national broadcaster NHK reported that an air force F-35A disappeared from radar screens during a routine training flight.

According to the military, ground control lost contact with the plane at around 7:27 pm on Tuesday, about 135 km northeast of Misawa city, during training. The plane is believed to have one pilot onboard.

Over a dozen Maritime Self-Defence Force patrol aircraft and escort vessels are engaged in a search operation, NHK said, with the local Coast Guard also deploying two patrol vessels to help in the search.

Ten F-35As were delivered to the Misawa Air Base last year.



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Later Tuesday, Japanese Defence Minister Takeshi Iwaya said that the air force would suspend flights of its remaining F-35As for the time being following the plane’s disappearance, Kyodo has reported.

Tokyo ordered a total of 42 F-35As in late 2011, with the existing order updated to include 63 more F-35As and 42 F-35Bs by late 2018, with Japan becoming the second-largest buyer of Lockheed Martin’s fifth-generation stealth fighter.

Last September, the US military grounded its entire fleet of F-35s in the wake of a Marine Corps F-35 crash in South Carolina. That incident followed reports in late 2017 that a US F-35 deployed in Okinawa, Japan lost part of its fuselage in mid-air during a routine training mission.

The F-35 program is one of the most expensive defense projects in history, with a projected total cost of $1.5 trillion over its 55-year lifespan.

 In addition to cost (currently ranging from $89.2-$115.5 million apiece), the plane has been criticized for a plethora of glitches and design flaws which continue to plague it over four years after its introduction with the US military in 2015. Acting US Defence Secretary Patrick Shanahan has reportedly described the plane as “f***ed up,” with President Donald Trump repeatedly criticizing it as an example of Pentagon waste on the campaign trail.

Last month, a US defense spending watchdog complained that the new F-35s for the US Navy were nowhere near operational status, emphasizing that the plane was “not ready to face current or future threats” and could put US military personnel’s lives at risk.



 Owen reveals the best strategy for the White House.</s>TOKYO (AP) — Japanese defense officials say a search is underway for a fighter jet after it disappeared from radar during a flight exercise in northern Japan. The Air Self-Defense Force says the F-35A stealth…

TOKYO (AP) — Japanese defense officials say a search is underway for a fighter jet after it disappeared from radar during a flight exercise in northern Japan.

The Air Self-Defense Force says the F-35A stealth jet went missing Tuesday while flying off the eastern coast of Aomori. It says the plane disappeared from radar about half an hour after taking off from the Misawa air base with three other F-35As for a flight exercise.

Defense Minister Takeshi Iwaya told reporters that a search and rescue operation was underway for the missing jet and its pilot. The cause of the mishap was not immediately known.

Iwaya says 12 other F-35s at the Misawa base will be grounded.

Japan plans to buy 147 U.S.-made F-35s, most of them F-35As, over the next decade.

Copyright © 2019 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, written or redistributed.</s>Search and rescue teams found wreckage from a Japanese F-35 stealth fighter that crashed over the Pacific Ocean close to northern Japan, but the pilot remains missing, authorities said on Wednesday.

The aircraft, less than one-year-old, was the first F-35 to be assembled in Japan and was only in the air for 28 minutes on Tuesday, a defence official said.

It is only the second F-35 to crash in the two-decades it has been flying.

The advanced, single-seat jet was flying about 135 km (84 miles) east of the Misawa air base in Aomori Prefecture at about 7:27 p.m. (1027 GMT) on Tuesday when it disappeared from radar, the Air Self Defense Force said.

"We recovered the wreckage and determined it was from the F-35," a spokesman for the Air Self Defence Force (ASDF) said, adding that the pilot of the aircraft was still missing.

The aircraft was at the front of a group of four planes out for training manouvres when it sent an "aborting practice" signal and then disappeared from the radar, Defence Minister Takeshi Iwaya told reporters.

"We'll need to cooperate with the U.S. forces and I believe arrangements are being made for this," Iwaya said, adding the priority was on determining the cause of the accident.

Japan has a total of 13 F-35s, including the one that crashed. The crashed aircraft was the fifth F-35 delivered to the ASDF, but the first assembled by Mitsubishi Heavy Industries in Japan, a second ASDF official told Reuters.

The previous four aircraft had been used for training in the United States before being brought to Japan, the defence official said.

A representative for Mitsubishi Heavy Industries said the company had no immediate comment. Mitsubishi Heavy Industries Ltd assembles the aircraft at a plant near Nagoya in central Japan. Each costs around $100 million, slightly more than the cost of buying a fully assembled plane.

The aircraft had been in the air for 28 minutes when contact was lost, the official said. The pilot had 3,200 hours of flight time, with 60 hours on the F-35, the official said.The aircraft crashed in waters that reach a depth of around 1,500 metres, making recovery difficult, the official said.

ONLY SECOND F35 TO CRASH

The aircraft was less than a year old and was delivered to the ASDF in May last year, the ASDF spokesman said. Japan's first squadron of F-35s has just become operational at Misawa and the government plans to buy 87 of the stealth fighters to modernise its air defences as China's military power grows.

The crash marks only the second time an F-35 has gone down since the plane began flying almost two decades ago. It was also the first crash of an A version of the fifth-generation fighter, which is designed to penetrate enemy defences by evading radar detection.

Lockheed Martin, which manufactures the aircraft, said it was standing by to support the Japanese Air Self Defense Force as needed. The Pentagon said it was monitoring the situation.

A U.S. military short take off and landing (STOVL) F-35B crashed near the Marine Corps Air Station Beaufort in South Carolina in September prompting a temporary grounding of the aircraft. Lockheed Martin also makes a C version of the fighter designed to operate off carriers.

Japan's new F-35s will include 18 short take off and vertical landing (STOVL) B variants that planners want to deploy on its islands along the edge of the East China Sea.
A Japan Air Self-Defense Force F-35 Lightning II jet disappears from radar while on a training mission over the Pacific Ocean. Japanese Defense Minister Takeshi Iwaya subsequently grounds Japan's fleet of F-35s.