# Lost Military Plane **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [September 18, 2023, 3:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lost-military-plane/990323 "2023-09-18T15:46:04Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![bob\_2](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bob_2/32/3341_2.png) [@bob\_2](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bob_2)\ **Post date:** [September 18, 2023, 3:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lost-military-plane/990323/1 "2023-09-18T15:46:04Z")
What can you do when the Air Force loses a stealth fighter? **The US military has asked for the public’s help to locate one of its $80m (£65m) F-35 fighter jets after the pilot ejected from the aircraft.** > **[Missing F-35: US military asks for public's help to find jet](https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-66841194)** > > Officials are unable to locate the F-35 jet after its pilot safely ejected from it in South Carolina. ---
**Author:** ![Schnitte](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/schnitte/32/9033_2.png) [@Schnitte](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Schnitte)\ **Post date:** [September 18, 2023, 3:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lost-military-plane/990323/2 "2023-09-18T15:50:23Z")
Use images from reconnaissance satellites? ---
**Author:** ![bob\_2](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bob_2/32/3341_2.png) [@bob\_2](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bob_2)\ **Post date:** [September 18, 2023, 3:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lost-military-plane/990323/3 "2023-09-18T15:53:19Z")
It’s supposed to be hard to spot? Maybe reconnaissance satellites are not stationed over S Carolina? ---
**Author:** ![Si\_Amigo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/si_amigo/32/2877_2.png) [@Si\_Amigo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Si_Amigo)\ **Post date:** [September 18, 2023, 4:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lost-military-plane/990323/4 "2023-09-18T16:06:30Z")
Maybe they could also locate the lost nuclear bomb down there as well. > **[A nuclear bomb is still missing after it was dropped off the Georgia...](https://www.businessinsider.com/missing-nuclear-bomb-georgia-coast-still-not-found-2023-9)** > > A nuclear bomb is still missing. In 1958, an Air Force B-47 jet dropped a Mark 15 near Tybee Island, Georgia. Despite searches, it's still missing. ---
**Author:** ![md-2000](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/9d8465/32.png) [@md-2000](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/md-2000)\ **Post date:** [September 18, 2023, 4:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lost-military-plane/990323/5 "2023-09-18T16:15:35Z")
I’m surprised the ELT is not working. It must have made a big boom. ---
**Author:** ![LSLGuy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lslguy/32/5813_2.png) [@LSLGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LSLGuy)\ **Post date:** [September 18, 2023, 4:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lost-military-plane/990323/6 "2023-09-18T16:23:02Z")
It was the US Marine Corps, not the US Air Force, who misplaced this one. The “public’s help” part is obvious. Did you see it go by, or see a fiery crash of something falling from the sky, or encounter some fresh wreckage while bushwacking someplace or plowing your farm? If so, call 1-800-My-Lost-Jet. FYI, here’s an irreverent non-FQ thread on the same situation: > [@Psst...hey, buddy....maybe you've seen an F-35 fighter jet someplace 'round here?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/psst-hey-buddy-maybe-youve-seen-an-f-35-fighter-jet-someplace-round-here/990295): > > Just wonderin’, ya know… Because the army lost one someplace in South Carolina, and can’t find it. . ---
**Author:** ![Bosda\_Di\_Chi\_of\_Tricor](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bosda_di_chi_of_tricor/32/16845_2.png) [@Bosda\_Di\_Chi\_of\_Tricor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bosda_Di_Chi_of_Tricor)\ **Post date:** [September 18, 2023, 4:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lost-military-plane/990323/7 "2023-09-18T16:25:22Z")
This problem dogs Invisible Jets. Wonder Woman can never remember where she parks. ---
**Author:** ![gnoitall](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/bb73d2/32.png) [@gnoitall](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gnoitall)\ **Post date:** [September 18, 2023, 4:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lost-military-plane/990323/8 "2023-09-18T16:29:11Z")
So, let me ask for clarification. This Factual Questions thread is to factually discuss search techniques that could be used to locate the missing Marine F-35 aircraft? Because we already have a different thread for general foolishness about this news item. ---
**Author:** ![Schnitte](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/schnitte/32/9033_2.png) [@Schnitte](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Schnitte)\ **Post date:** [September 18, 2023, 5:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lost-military-plane/990323/9 "2023-09-18T17:21:24Z")
Stealth planes are designed to minimise reflection of radar waves. They’re not invisible. And spy satellites are not “stationed” above any particular spot. They orbit the Earth, and on orbits far below geostationary. ---
**Author:** ![Whack-a-Mole](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/whack-a-mole/32/141_2.png) [@Whack-a-Mole](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Whack-a-Mole)\ **Post date:** [September 18, 2023, 5:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lost-military-plane/990323/10 "2023-09-18T17:32:33Z")
> [@Schnitte](#): > > Stealth planes are designed to minimise reflection of radar waves. They’re not invisible. Would a fighter jet flying in the US have its transponder on (i.e. it is not trying to be stealthy)? Doesn’t the transponder help ATC track where the plane is? ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_L.A](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnny_l.a/32/1084_2.png) [@Johnny\_L.A](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_L.A)\ **Post date:** [September 18, 2023, 5:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lost-military-plane/990323/11 "2023-09-18T17:33:22Z")
> [@Schnitte](#): > > Use images from reconnaissance satellites? One problem is that plane crashes very often do not look like airplanes. If the wreckage is submerged, the so much the harder. ETA: [Civil Air Patrol Scanner Training slides – **ATTENTION: POWERPOINT FILE**](https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=&ved=2ahUKEwieurXu2LSBAxUyHjQIHZk5A1AQFnoECBUQAQ&url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.gocivilairpatrol.com%2Fmedia%2Fcms%2FScanner_Training_Slides_2DC65BE46DCC7.ppt&usg=AOvVaw02lWH7fejx2Q-MYUg3g-ab&opi=89978449) Photographs of crash sites are on slides 193 through 224. As shown, some crash sites are difficult to see. ---
**Author:** ![LSLGuy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lslguy/32/5813_2.png) [@LSLGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LSLGuy)\ **Post date:** [September 18, 2023, 6:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lost-military-plane/990323/12 "2023-09-18T18:15:26Z")
> [@Whack-a-Mole](#): > > Would a fighter jet flying in the US have its transponder on (i.e. it is not trying to be stealthy)? Doesn’t the transponder help ATC track where the plane is? Almost certainly, and Yes. We (at least I) don’t yet know _why_ the pilot jumped out. If the cause was engine failure in that single engine airplane then the transponder would go off-line when most of the electrical system did right after the engine quit. So a stealthy airplane would be practically un-trackable by ATC after that moment. On the other hand, without an engine the remaining flight time and flight distance would be pretty short from the last point ATC (or their wingman) knew where they were. So the area to search will be small-ish. If the engine was still running and the rest of the avionics and hydraulics were operating normally, such that the airplane might have continued on obliviously until fuel exhaustion minutes or hours later, then the potential search area is huge. But then why did the pilot jump out? A conundrum to me. So far. ---
**Author:** ![engineer\_comp\_geek](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/engineer_comp_geek/32/504_2.png) [@engineer\_comp\_geek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/engineer_comp_geek)\ **Post date:** [September 18, 2023, 8:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lost-military-plane/990323/13 "2023-09-18T20:14:45Z")
**Moderator Note** This thread is in FQ, so please stick to the facts. If you want to have a less factual discussion, join the MPSIMS thread that @LSLGuy linked to above (and repeated here): > [@Psst...hey, buddy....maybe you've seen an F-35 fighter jet someplace 'round here?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/psst-hey-buddy-maybe-youve-seen-an-f-35-fighter-jet-someplace-round-here/990295): > > Just wonderin’, ya know… Because the army lost one someplace in South Carolina, and can’t find it. . ---
**Author:** ![Onthefly](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/9de053/32.png) [@Onthefly](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Onthefly)\ **Post date:** [September 18, 2023, 11:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lost-military-plane/990323/14 "2023-09-18T23:25:31Z")
They found the debris field. It is near where I grew up. It’s in a very rural area with farmland and forest. ---
**Author:** ![Onthefly](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/9de053/32.png) [@Onthefly](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Onthefly)\ **Post date:** [September 18, 2023, 11:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lost-military-plane/990323/15 "2023-09-18T23:32:12Z")
Near Stuckey, SC. ---
**Author:** ![bob\_2](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bob_2/32/3341_2.png) [@bob\_2](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bob_2)\ **Post date:** [September 19, 2023, 8:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lost-military-plane/990323/16 "2023-09-19T08:01:28Z")
from the BBC: > The wreckage of the $100m (£80m) plane - which disappeared on Sunday afternoon - was discovered in rural Williamsburg County, said authorities. > > The debris found has been confirmed as the wreckage of the missing plane, a military spokesperson told the BBC. > > “The mishap is currently under investigation, and we are unable to provide additional details to preserve the integrity of the investigative process,” the Marine Corps said on Monday after the search ended. > > The public has been asked to keep away from the area to allow investigators to do their work. > > The fighter jet was left in autopilot mode when the pilot ejected, a spokesman at Joint Base Charleston told NBC News, adding that it may have been airborne for some time, complicating its discovery. ---
**Author:** ![md-2000](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/9d8465/32.png) [@md-2000](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/md-2000)\ **Post date:** [September 20, 2023, 4:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lost-military-plane/990323/17 "2023-09-20T16:10:33Z")
The news said the transponder was malfunctioning (among other things) complicating the ability to locate it. ---
**Author:** ![Whack-a-Mole](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/whack-a-mole/32/141_2.png) [@Whack-a-Mole](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Whack-a-Mole)\ **Post date:** [September 20, 2023, 4:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lost-military-plane/990323/18 "2023-09-20T16:13:46Z")
Do military jets have “black” boxes in them? (Flight Data Recorders) ---
**Author:** ![bob\_2](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bob_2/32/3341_2.png) [@bob\_2](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bob_2)\ **Post date:** [September 20, 2023, 4:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lost-military-plane/990323/19 "2023-09-20T16:40:05Z")
> [@Whack-a-Mole](#): > > Do military jets have “black” boxes in them? Apparently, some of them have a Deployable Flight Incident Recorder Set (DFIRS), a hardier, even more survivable black box designed to be blown free of the plane once the computer system detects the ejection seats have been used, or if it detects a collision. ---
**Author:** ![LSLGuy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lslguy/32/5813_2.png) [@LSLGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LSLGuy)\ **Post date:** [September 20, 2023, 4:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lost-military-plane/990323/20 "2023-09-20T16:50:24Z")
On at least some jets the FDR is attached to the ejection seat itself. Back in my era they were very limited in duration and in number of parameters. I have no clue about F-35s specifically.