ANCHORAGE, Alaska (AP) \u2014 A U.S. Air Force pilot was reported to be safe after a single-seat F-35 fighter jet crashed Tuesday during a training exercise at a base in Alaska.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The pilot experienced an \u201cinflight malfunction\u201d but was able to eject from the aircraft, Col. Paul Townsend, commander of the 354th Fighter Wing, told a news conference. The plane crashed during the landing phase of the flight at Eielson Air Force Base, he said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The pilot had declared an inflight emergency prior to the crash and was in stable condition and being evaluated at a medical facility, he said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The crash, which occurred early Tuesday afternoon, caused significant damage to the aircraft, the Air Force said in a statement.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Eielson Air Force Base is about 25 miles (40 kilometers) south of Fairbanks.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Townsend said in the statement said the Air Force would conduct \u201ca thorough investigation in hopes to minimize the chances of such occurrences from happening again.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Eielson was selected in 2016 to host 54 F-35s, spawning an expansion that cost more than a half-billion dollars that was to include 36 new buildings and dozens of housing units. The expansion included about 3,500 new active duty airmen and their dependents.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
With the capability to fly more than 12 hours at a time, the F-35 can reach almost anywhere in the Northern Hemisphere in one mission.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
In May, an F-35 fighter jet on its way from Texas to Edwards Air Force Base near Los Angeles crashed<\/u><\/a> after the pilot stopped to refuel in New Mexico. The pilot was taken to a hospital with serious injuries.<\/p>\n\n\n\n In October, a Marine investigation blamed the pilot of an F-35 for ejecting from the aircraft when he didn\u2019t need to, causing the fighter to fly unmanned for 11 minutes before it crashed<\/u><\/a> in rural South Carolina in 2023.<\/p>\n\n\n\n