Sacked Marine Pilot Whose F-35B Flew Without Him After Ejecting Gives His Side Of The Story
Charles Del Pizzo has finally given his version of the bizarre 2023 incident that resulted in his jet flying for dozens of miles without him in it before crashing.
Howard Altman
Posted 11 Hours Ago
Retired Marine Col. Charles Del Pizzo told a South Carolina newspaper his version of events that led to his F-35B crashing nearly 12 minutes after he ejected.
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The Marines partially blamed Charles “Tre” Del Pizzo for the loss of his F-35B Joint Strike Fighter that flew pilotless for nearly 12 minutes before slamming into the ground following his ejection back in September 2023. Now the 48-year-old retired colonel is giving his side of the story.
In a truly amazing piece by Post and Courier reporter Tony Bartelme, Del Pizzo pushed back on the Marine Corps’ findings, saying he was essentially blinded in bad weather by cascading equipment malfunctions while returning to Joint Base Charleston, South Carolina, from a training sortie over the Atlantic Ocean.
Before the incident, Del Pizzo was putting the jet through its paces as he was learning its strengths and weaknesses before taking command of VMX-1, a key operational test and evaluation squadron in Yuma, Arizona. The mishap occurred as Del Pizzo was attempting an instrument landing in the F-35B’s vertical mode in zero-visibility conditions during a raging storm. Unlike the Air Force’s F-35A and the Navy F-35C carrier variant, the B version flown by the Marines possesses short takeoff, vertical landing (STOVL) capabilities, allowing it to take off, land and hover in a manner similar to the AV-B8 Harrier jets that Del Pizzo used to fly.
https://www.twz.com/air/sacked-marine-pilot-whose-f-35b-flew-without-him-after-ejecting-gives-his-side-of-the-story
