Leaked video that appears to show the crash of an F-35C on the USS Carl Vinson last month shows the aircraft sinking well below the approach path before as it approaches the carrier in the South China Sea. What appears to be cellphone video of the Pilot’s Landing Aid Television (PLAT) showing the crash sequence started making the rounds of aviation sites on Sunday. The PLAT image comes from a camera embedded on the centerline of the landing deck and it is marked with the correct glideslope gradient.
As the $100 million aircraft approaches the deck it sinks drastically low and the Landing Signal Officer, who has the same view displayed on his monitor, screams for the pilot to “wave off.” The engine can be heard spooling up in other video from under the stern but it wasn’t enough. The plane clipped the ramp and caught fire before sliding the length of the deck and falling into the water. Seven sailors on the deck were injured and the pilot ejected safely and was recovered by a rescue helicopter. The Navy is trying to recover the wrecked airplane from the seabed.
