A pilot made a miraculous escape after the crash of an F-35 fighter jet just before it crashed to the ground and exploded in a fireball.
The $135 million plane nearly crashed at Albuquerque International Sunport on Tuesday afternoon New Mexicocausing a large plume of smoke to rise and the pilot to be injured.
The plane had left Fort Worth, Texas and was headed to nearby Edwards Air Force Base The Angels when it crashed into a hill on the south side of the airport.
The military fighter jet crashed after the pilot stopped for refueling at Kirtland Air Force Base in New Mexico, manufacturer Lockheed Martin said.
The pilot, the only person on board, was taken to a nerve hospital with serious injuries and is reportedly in stable condition.
A $135 million F-35 fighter jet nearly crashed Tuesday afternoon at Albuquerque International Sunport in New Mexico, sending up a large plume of smoke and injuring the pilot
Emergency responders respond to a military aircraft crash near Albuquerque International Airport on Tuesday, May 28, 2024
The plane had just taken off from Albuquerque and was headed to a base in the south California when it crashed near the international airport around 2 p.m.
Emergency crews were seen on the scene Tuesday afternoon and the pilot was reportedly conscious when he was transported to the University of New Mexico Hospital.
Authorities have not released any cause of the wreck, but witnesses have reported it KOB4 that the plane appeared to have a problem just before taking off from the runway.
Patrick White, who was driving in the area at the time of the crash, told The Associated Press that he saw the plane hovering low to the ground and kicking up a cloud of dirt and dust.
He said it disappeared from his view for a moment, and then he saw “a huge plume of black smoke.”
The military jet crashed after the pilot stopped for refueling at Kirtland Air Force Base in New Mexico, manufacturer Lockheed Martin said. Emergency services were photographed at the scene
Flights from the airport resumed and the pilot – the only person on the plane – was reportedly conscious when they were taken away
As he drove past the crash, he said he saw a piece of the jet in the middle of the road.
This was stated by a spokesperson for Kirtland Air Force Base, just southeast of Sunport CBS News that the pilot had “transferred” the F-35 from the Lockheed Martin facility at the Naval Air Reserve Station in Fort Worth to the Los Angeles base.
He stopped at Kirtland Air Force Base to refuel around 1 p.m. and had just left for Edwards Air Force Base when the plane crashed near the airport.
Two civilians were also examined at the scene, CBS reports, but were not taken to hospital.
Albuquerque Mayor Tim Keller addressed X after the incident, tweeting, “Grateful for the quick action of the first responders who arrived on scene. Praying for the pilot.”
DailyMail.com has reached out to Albuquerque police and both Air Force bases for more information.
Authorities have not released any cause of the wreck, but witnesses told KOB4 that the plane appeared to have some kind of problem shortly before taking off from the runway. Photos were taken of personnel at the scene after the crash
Emergency services arrived on site on Tuesday afternoon
Located on the southern edge of Albuquerque, Kirtland is home to the 377th Air Base Wing, which conducts nuclear operations and trains and equips expeditionary forces. It is also home to the Air Force Research Laboratory.
It marks the second military aircraft crash in New Mexico in the past month.
In April, an F-16 Fighting Falcon crashed in a remote area near Holloman Air Force Base in the southern part of the state, leaving the pilot with minor injuries after ejecting from the plane.