Leaked Video Appears To Show US Navy's F-35C Slamming Into USS Carl Vinson Before Plunging Into Sea

A second video supposedly of the U.S. Navy's F-35C Lightning II jet crashing onto the deck of the aircraft carrier USS Carl Vinson before disappearing into the depths of the South China Sea has leaked online.

The unverified smartphone video appears to show the CCTV footage of the crash that happened on Jan. 24, reported The Drive. It includes scenes from the in-deck Pilot's Landing Aid Television and the ship's Island Camera Room.

The video shows the F-35 flying down with a great sink rate just before the sudden touchdown. The Landing Signal Officer is heard frantically screaming to add "power" and then "wave off, wave off" to the pilot, instructing him to abort the landing and go around. By then, the aircraft slams into the deck, lopping off the main landing gear. The fighter jet then bounces on the deck trailing flames, charges off to a side before plunging into the South China Sea.

The aircraft carrier's crew then calls for a fire crew, who immediately starts spraying foam on the deck.

The video then shows another footage, a side view of the aircraft crashing into the deck. Though there is a call saying there is a pilot in the water, the video does not show him ejecting. The U.S. Navy did clarify later that the pilot escaped unhurt.

Though the Navy has not verified the video, the report added that "it appears to fit the circumstances of the crash." The video first appeared on Reddit though the user who posted it clarified it as "not mine."

Earlier, another video showing the final moments leading up to the crash had leaked, which was confirmed by the U.S. Navy. The 18-second video, which did rounds on social media, showed the jet approaching the carrier. Though the crash itself isn't visible, we hear a loud noise and smoke emanating from the flight deck. Images of the F-35 on the South China Sea too had appeared on Redditt, days after the crash.

The U.S. Navy is currently working on retrieving the wreckage of the F-35C Lightning II fighter amid reports that Chinese salvage ships were also heading toward the location of the sunken jet. The mission is very significant for the U.S. as it doesn't want its competitors, including Russia and China, to lay their hands on the sensitive components of the highly advanced jet.