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USAF F-35A crashes during Nellis training; pilot ejects safely

An F-35A assigned to Nellis Air Force Base crashed March 31 within the Nevada Test and Training Range after the pilot safely ejected, officials said. The jet went down roughly 25 miles northeast of Indian Springs; emergency responders reported no civilian injuries and an Air Force investigation is underway.

Discovered 2026-03-31T14:19:15.393614-07:00 | 2026-03-31T14:19:15.393614-07:00

Briefing

What Hype is tracking

  • The jet crashed inside the Nevada Test and Training Range about 25 miles northeast of Indian Springs; the pilot ejected safely, there are no reported civilian injuries, and the Air Force has opened an investigation.

  • This incident adds to recent F-35 operational events, including a reported external panel loss during a training sortie near Okinawa (external panel loss near Okinawa).

  • The crash will be reviewed in the context of ongoing program-level concerns about F-35 software and development processes highlighted by the Pentagon’s independent tester (Pentagon tester concerns).

Reported By

news.defcros.com news.ssbcrack.com aviationnews.eu Aviation A2Z The Aviationist aero.de
Sources Tracked
21
First Seen
2026-03-31T14:19:15.393614-07:00
Latest Update
2026-04-05T22:46:36.145608-07:00
Coverage
Defense

Sources

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