The pilot of a fuel tanker showed impressive skills when he touched down safely in a remote area of California and prevented injuries among the seven other crew members after a mid-air collision with a fighter jet, Marine Corps officials said Wednesday.
It’s unclear what happened to cause the F-35B to collide with the KC-130J tanker in the late afternoon Tuesday, said 1st Lt. Brett Vannier, a spokesman at Marine Corps Air Station Yuma.
The jet was refueling when the collision occurred and it crashed in the desert near the Salton Sea, northeast of San Diego, while the tanker came in on its belly in a field near Thermal.
The jet pilot ejected successfully after the collision and is being treated, officials said.