The U.S. Marine Corps has confirmed an ‘aircraft mishap’ occurred at MCAS Miramar on Jul. 31 after footage appeared on social media showing an F-35B Lightning II off the runway and on fire.
U.S. Marine Corps spokespeople have confirmed to the press that the pilot of the F-35B aircraft was able to eject safely and was recovered and taken to a medical facility with non-life threatening injuries.
Emergency personnel responded to an F-35B aircraft mishap on MCAS Miramar at 10:00 am PST. The pilot ejected, was transported to a local medical facility in stable condition for evaluation and treatment of non-life-threatening injuries.
— U.S. Marines (@USMC) July 31, 2026
Footage emerged on social media at around 1730 UTC on Friday, Jul. 31, showing a plume of dark smoke rising from the airfield at Marine Corps Air Station Miramar, California. A news helicopter was soon dispatched and captured more detail of the scene, revealing a stricken and burned F-35B Lightning II surrounded by charred grass and firefighting vehicles.
BREAKING: Emergency crews are responding to an aircraft mishap appearing to involve an F-35 at Marine Corps Air Station Miramar in San Diego after the incident was reported earlier this morning.+
Authorities have not released details about what happened, and it remains unclear… pic.twitter.com/PqTBisE7Jo
— Fox News (@FoxNews) July 31, 2026
The jet was assigned to the 3rd Marine Aircraft Wing, Marine Aircraft Group 11, headquartered at the San Diego base which is most famous as the former home of TOPGUN. Miramar was transferred from the U.S. Navy to the U.S. Marine Corps in the 1990s, and today is home to F-35B and F-35C Lightning IIs, F/A-18C/D Hornets, MV-22B Ospreys, KC-130J Hercules, and CH-53E Super Stallions.
The Aviationist understands that a safety stand-down of U.S. Marine Corps F-35B operations – at least for non-essential flying – was instituted shortly after the incident.
Exclusive video sent by our follower.
Initial reports indicate that a U.S. Marine Corps F-35B Lightning II has crashed at Marine Corps Air Station Miramar, home of the 3rd Marine Aircraft Wing, in San Diego, California. pic.twitter.com/qze3GLm8Og
— aircraftmaintenancengineer (@airmainengineer) July 31, 2026
Further detail on the incident has yet to be released. It is the first known major incident involving an F-35B since May 2024. Statistically, the F-35 is an incredibly safe aircraft, but as more and more airframes are delivered and more flight hours are flown the chances of any incidents occurring will only increase.
Air traffic control audio confirms the incident took place while the jet was on short final to land.
NIGHTMARE 21 flight (VMFAT-502 Marine Fighter Attack Training Squadron 502) crash ATC audio at Miramar MCAS this morning. The pilot ejected 🙏
Audio via @liveatc & Bill B. https://t.co/LgNpgfaqDC pic.twitter.com/VuHUqwIhaV
— Thenewarea51 (@thenewarea51) July 31, 2026
This article concerns an ongoing news story and will be updated if and when new information becomes available.
