That is the fifth column in a sequence commemorating Sunshine Week.
Flying by a extreme storm over Charleston in 2023, a Marine pilot all of a sudden confronted the disorienting disaster of a number of system malfunctions in his F-35B stealth fighter jet.
The pilot later instructed investigators he was uncertain whether or not he may belief the devices and he feared an engine had failed, doubtlessly leaving the aircraft uncontrolled.
He ejected over North Charleston. However the aircraft flew on, disappearing from contact.
A day later, searchers positioned the stays of the aircraft strewn in a particles subject in Williamsburg County, north of Charleston close to Hemingway. The pilot survived and luckily nobody was injured on the bottom.
Sunshine Week reinforces the significance of open authorities and our function as journalists in defending the general public’s proper to know.
Senior tasks reporter Tony Bartelme dug deeply into the mystery surrounding the jet and its disappearance and wrote a number of tales. His reporting revealed issues raised in regards to the costly aircraft’s obvious vulnerability in lightning storms and different questions which have surfaced after crashes. No less than 11 different F-35s have crashed since 2018. He additionally drilled into questions on why the navy misplaced observe of the aircraft.
A Marine Corps investigation concluded that, even with the aircraft’s malfunctions, the choice to eject was “finally inappropriate” as a result of different instrumentation was “partially operational.”
Tony has taken the lead for us on many high-profile tasks. I requested him to reply questions on the backstory of this investigation, and here’s what he needed to say:
What led you to this story?
The thriller. Seven or eight months after the pilot ejected and the F-35B crashed, the general public nonetheless didn’t know what precipitated the crash and why it stored flying. In my thoughts, this void was an enormous deal. The F-35 is the nation’s most costly navy program, a roughly $2 trillion funding within the nation’s protection. The general public had a proper to know what occurred, so we determined to search out out.
What obstacles did you encounter?
The Protection Division was each useful and a hindrance. They declined to inform us who the pilot was and clarify why it was taking so lengthy to complete their investigation. We realized later that the navy had completed its most vital investigations inside months and principally sat on the discharge.
On the similar time, the Marines have been very accommodating to our request to go to Marine Corps Air Station Beaufort, a significant F-35 instruction heart for the navy. The pilots and folks we met there have been unbelievable. However what occurred over North Charleston was nonetheless off-limits.
A F-35B Lightning II is stationed on the tarmac at Marine Corps Air Station Beaufort on June 27.
What data did you pursue?
We sought data by the Freedom of Info Act for paperwork that described the investigation into the crash.
Had been the data simple or tough to acquire?
Sure and no. They took their candy time releasing them, however they didn’t cost us after they did. We weren’t the one media shops requesting the data, so after they launched them everybody bought them, and there was a mad scramble to write down a narrative. The Submit and Courier was the primary outlet to interrupt the story.
What did they reveal?
The data solved some mysteries and added extra. The Marines appeared to level the finger on the pilot, saying he ejected after a sequence of malfunctions however nonetheless may have flown the aircraft. The paperwork mirrored the conclusions of just one investigation. We knew there have been two others.
This story was made potential by beneficiant reader donations to The Submit and Courier Investigative Fund.
To contribute, please go to postandcourierfund.com.
You can even ship a examine to the Spartanburg County Basis, 424 E Kennedy Road, Spartanburg, SC 29302, and write “Submit and Courier Investigative Fund” within the topic line.
After the story, we filed one other FOIA for paperwork associated to these investigations. We ultimately obtained greater than 500 pages, most of them fully blacked out.
Would the story have come to gentle with out urgent for open authorities and/or data?
Unsure I’ve reply for this one, however I’ll say that the F-35 story isn’t over, and that we’ll have new info quickly that will likely be very revealing.
