New York

An advanced Marine Corps F-35B fighter jet in the United States went missing on September 17 after a "mishap" forced a pilot to eject near the Charleston area of South Carolina state, the service said.

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The pilot was being treated at a local medical centre, but the plane itself, which has a unit cost of almost $90 million, couldn’t be found as of Sunday evening, a spokeswoman from Joint Base Charleston said. 

Initial reports claimed that the fighter jet could very well be flying during the immediate minutes following the pilot's ejection. It is yet not clear if the fighter jet is still flying in the air or has met a tragic crash.

"Emergency response teams are trying to locate the plane," said Senior Master Sgt. Heather Stanton, Wall Street Journal reported.

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The jet was assigned to a Marine Corps training squadron. The Joint Base sent a post on X, formerly known as Twitter, asking the public to call the base if they found the aircraft.

"Based on the jet’s last-known position and in coordination with the FAA, we are focusing our attention north of JB Charleston, around Lake Moultrie and Lake Marion," it added.

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The Marine Corps said it was gathering information on the matter and would be conducting an investigation.

There remains a possibility that the fighter jet could have ended up in the water.

This is not the first time that such an event has occurred. 

In 1989, a MiG-23 traveled over 900 kilometers through Europe after its pilot ejected, eventually crashing in Belgium.

Responding to the development, local congressperson Nancy Mace wrote on X: "Now that I got that out of the way. How in the hell do you lose an F-35? How is there not a tracking device, and we're asking the public to what, find a jet and turn it in?"

The F-35 Lightning II stands out as one of the most secretive fighter jets available, excelling in its capacity to function within hostile airspace with minimal risk. This remarkable attribute predominantly hinges on its stealth capabilities.

In contrast to common misconceptions, stealth doesn't render an aircraft completely invisible. Rather, it intricately complicates an adversary's ability to identify, track, or target the aircraft through a blend of design, tactics, and cutting-edge technology.

Despite its substantial dimensions, spanning 51 feet in length and 35 feet in width, the F-35 isn't a small aircraft. Its design, however, is strategically oriented toward redirecting radar energy away from its point of origin.

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