Philip Smart | Adelaide
The engine stall and fire that forced a Lockheed Martin F-35 Lightning II pilot to abort his takeoff and abandon the aircraft on the runway on June 3 last year has been traced to a turbine rotor arm.
A US Air Force 58th Fighter Squadron F-35 suffered a stall and fire on takeoff from Eglin Air Force Base, which forced the pilot to bring the aircraft to a stop and exit over the side of the cockpit. Emergency crews responded and extinguished the fire before it could destroy the aircraft, although it will now be dismantled for parts.
An Air Education and Training Command Accident Investigation Board has determined that the engine’s third stage turbine rotor forward arm, carrying the turbine blades, failed. Parts were ejected through the upper portion of the aircraft fuselage, severing internal fuel and hydraulic lines and allowing fuel and hydraulic fluid to catch fire. The aft two thirds of the aircraft sustained significant fire damage.
The total cost of the damage has yet to be determined, but the US Air Force system of accident damage assessment puts the incident in the “in excess of $50 million” category.