F35B Nose gear collapse during tow in Okinawa

ElPaso Pilot

ElPaso Pilot

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ElPaso Pilot
Ouch.

What's up with the oscillation before something disengages?


A $100million F-35 stealth fighter jet crashed onto the runway while being towed at the Kadena Air Base, Okinawa, Japan, on December 1, 2022, around 2pm
It made a precautionary landing due to possible electrical problems
After landing on the runway, crews began towing the aircraft when the front wheel, which can retract under the cockpit, suddenly collapsed
 
Prolly not covered under the warranty ... :(
 
ElPaso Pilot said:
Ouch.
What's up with the oscillation before something disengages?
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Definitely something not right with that aircraft before the nose wheel collapsed.

Looks like the brakes were engaging while it was being towed, which is odd since there was a rider in the cockpit. Maybe someone forgot to tell him that 'brake rider' doesn't actually mean ride the brakes...
 
The vid was taken from the north wall outside the base at Kadena. The Japanese sit on this wall and record video and photo all day, everyday.

Since it was being towed from the runway, it landed with some fault (or diverted), and the pilot shut down instead of taxiing to the ramp. Transient Alert or the AR shop would be the ones towing it, and they would not be very familiar with the aircraft. It's a Marine aircraft, and they do not tow from the runway/controlled area at Kadena. That job belongs to TA or AR. Hard to tell if it's a pilot or maintainer in the cockpit but going to assume it was the pilot since it landed IFE and was being towed. The writing on the video is saying there was smoke coming from the right main. Parking brakes were obviously set. The tow bar doesn't appear to have come loose after the NLG collapsed; it looks like it broke forward of the adjustable forks.
 
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kyleb said:
Holy "dude needs to start his own thread", Batman.
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Eh...I can understand. My biggest disappointment in life is that, at 50 years old, I will not be alive to see some of the technology we are developing right now make it down to the GA fleet. Some of it will though, and that is nothing short of amazing.
 
that's quite a bit of torque to shear the lockdown pin on the nosewheel. I'm assuming they pinned the gear? :fcross:
 
hindsight2020 said:
that's quite a bit of torque to shear the lockdown pin on the nosewheel. I'm assuming they pinned the gear? :fcross:
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Not likely. It landed with an emergency (which has been pretty conservative with this airframe) and was most likely being towed off the runway/taxiway by TA/AR shops. They would most likely not have pinned the gear for the tow.

It only had to overcenter the lock.
 
Looks like bad timing on a brake application. Brakes on, just after a bounce peak. You can see the lower strut flex forward and the nose start down. White helmet in the cockpit, so not the pilot.
 
Minimal damage, maybe four or five million USD.
 
Can’t imagine the pucker factor that ground crew had. Gonna be a long day in the hot seat!
 
midwestpa24 said:
Reminded me of this incident.

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I’m wondering if this could happen to a small piston GA plane. Some have really strong parking brakes. If you leave them on, will the nose gear rip off just like that, when it’s towed?
 
NoHeat said:
I’m wondering if this could happen to a small piston GA plane. Some have really strong parking brakes. If you leave them on, will the nose gear rip off just like that, when it’s towed?
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There are many instances of GA planes getting a nasal dismemberment; one I saw was simply due to pulling at too sharp an angle.
 
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