F-35 stealth fighter caught fire due to wind

A US Air Force F-35 fifth-generation fighter caught fire while preparing to take off due to strong headwinds from behind.

US F-35 fighter jet. Photo: AP

The US Air Force said on September 25 that strong winds blowing from behind were the culprit that caused a fifth-generation F-35 stealth fighter to catch fire on the runway, according to Aviation Week.

An F-35A belonging to Squadron 61, US Air Force suddenly caught fire at noon on September 23, while preparing to take off on a test flight at Mountain Home base, Idaho, USA.

The fire was quickly extinguished, the Air Force said. The pilot and three technicians standing nearby were taken to a medical center for evaluation as a precaution, although no injuries were reported.

Preliminary examination results show that the plane's exhaust pipe caught fire when the engine started due to wind blowing from behind. When the plane caught fire, the wind was blowing at a speed of 70 km/h.

According to military experts, it is likely that unburned fuel residue stuck in the exhaust pipe caught fire when the flames emitted by the jet engine were blown back by the wind.

The burned plane was among theSeven F-35As were deployed to Mountain Home Air Force Base for surface-to-air training from September 10 to September 24. The aircraft are currently grounded pending an investigation.

Previously, 15 F-35s were also grounded when technicians discovered broken insulation layers in the cooling system inside the fuel tank.The F-35 program office said suppliers used substandard materials to produce the insulation.

According to VNE