First crash of an F-35 fighter: a mysterious flaw forces the pilot to eject over South Carolina

A US military combat aircraft sent smoke into the sky after suffering the first collision in the operational history of the aircraft.

The pilot, who was the only person on board the Lockheed Martin F-35B, was being examined for injuries Friday after being safely ejected.

The reason for the accident near the Marine Corps Air Base in Beaufort, South Carolina, is under investigation.

The aircraft, a short version of takeoff and landing of the F-35, crashed just before 12:00 local time.

It was the first crash of an F-35 fighter since it was commissioned in 2006, according to a military official who wanted to remain anonymous.

The incident also marked the first expulsion of an F-35B pilot.

The United States used this stealth fighter F-35B in combat this week for the first time against the Taliban in Afghanistan, after taking off from an amphibious assault ship in the Oman Sea.

Israel became the first country to use jet in action in May.

The accident coincided with the Pentagon's announcement of a $ 11.5 billion (8.8 billion pounds sterling) deal for 141 Lockheed F-35 fighter jets, which lowers the price of the most common version of 5.4%.

The aircraft involved in the South Carolina crash was one of the 245 F-35 fighter jets in the US military, said a Pentagon official, and one of the 320 planes F-35 in service worldwide.

Under the new deal signed Friday, the next deliveries of F-35B jets will cost about $ 115 million each, military officials said. Reuters.

The F-35B is the most expensive of the three variants of the F-35, which also includes the F-35A, a conventional take-off and landing version, and the F-35C, used on board aircraft carriers.

Lockheed is the number one US defense provider.