Jerusalem, 25 December, 2022 (TPS) — The Israeli Air Force announced on Sunday that it has grounded 11 of its advanced F-35I “Adir” fighter jets following the crash of a US F-35 fighter jet two weeks ago.
An F-35B Lightning II belonging to defense contractor Lockheed Martin crashed at an airbase in Forth Worth, Texas while carrying out a vertical landing on Dec. 15.
Video of the crash posted on social media showed the plane hovering over the runaway, landing and bouncing on its wheels up and down before collapsing on its right side and spinning around before the pilot ejected.
The plane had not yet been transferred to the government.
It isn’t clear what caused the jet to crash, but the decision to ground the Israel jets was based on the recommendation of American officials.
Israel’s first Adir jets became operational in 2017. The next year, then-Air Force commander, Major General Amikam Norkin confirmed that Israel had become the first country in the world to use the stealth aircraft in combat.
One Adir costs around $80 million.