A Lockheed Martin F-35 stealth fighter operated by the US military has made an emergency landing in the Middle East, reportedly after taking enemy fire.
The single-engined strike fighter was flying a combat mission over Iran when the emergency occurred, according to the US Central Command (CENTCOM), which is managing American operations as part of the joint US-Israeli air war against Iran.
The news, first reported by CNN, cites anonymous sources claiming the incident was the result of the F-35 being hit by incoming enemy fire. CENTCOM notably has not confirmed specific details of the encounter, including the nature of the emergency and the reported impact of hostile fire.
Despite the damage, the incident F-35 was able to land safely at an unspecified friendly location, while the pilot was described as being “in stable condition” by CENTCOM, suggesting there may have been an injury.
It has also not been confirmed which F-35 variant was involved. CENTCOM has previously published photos of ground-based F-35As from the US Air Force (USAF) participating in the campaign, dubbed Operation Epic Fury by Washington. The US Navy’s aircraft carrier USS Abraham Lincoln is also deployed to the region with a squadron of F-35Cs.
The Israeli air force has also made heavy use of its specialised F-35I jets as part of its concurrent campaign over Iran, named Operation Roaring Lion.
Stealth aircraft like the F-35 and Northrop Grumman B-2 bomber have been operating inside Iranian airspace throughout the past three weeks. Chairman of the US joint chiefs of staff, General Dan Caine, has previously said that Washington has established localised air superiority over Iran’s southern coastal region, with survivable aircraft such as the F-35 operating deeper inside Iranian territory.
Caine on 19 March revealed that non-stealthy Fairchild Republic A-10 attack jets and Boeing AH-64E attack helicopters are operating along the Iranian coast over the Strait of Hormuz, indicating the Pentagon views that airspace as fairly permissible.
Although the US Air Force has lost multiple aircraft during Epic Fury, the latest incident would mark the first American aircraft to take damage from enemy fire since combat operations began on 28 February. Three USAF Boeing F-15Es were shot down over Kuwait in a friendly fire incident and a KC-135 crashed over Iraq during what appears to be an aerial refuelling mishap.
The Pentagon says neither enemy nor friendly fire was a factor in that crash, which killed all six crew aboard the tanker. All six crew aboard the downed F-15Es safely ejected.
