America Races to Salvage Its Sunken F-35 Warplane - Before China Does

"A race against time is under way for the U.S. Navy to reach one of its downed fighter jets - before the Chinese get there first," reports the BBC:The $100m (74m) F-35C plane came down in the South China Sea after what the Navy describes as a "mishap" during take-off from the USS Carl Vinson. The jet is the Navy's newest, and crammed with classified equipment. As it is in international waters, it is technically fair game. Whoever gets there first, wins. The prize? All the secrets behind this very expensive, leading-edge fighting force.... A U.S. salvage vessel looks to be at least 10 days away from the crash site. That's too late, says defence consultant Abi Austen, because the black box battery will die before then, making it harder to locate the aircraft. "It's vitally important the U.S. gets this back," she says. "The F-35 is basically like a flying computer. It's designed to link up other assets - what the Air Force calls 'linking sensors to shooters'." The BBC describes the plane as the U.S. Navy's first "low observable" carrier-based aircraft, "which enables it to operate undetected in enemy airspace." And it's also "the most powerful fighter engine in the world," flying at speeds up to 1,200 mph, or Mach 1.6. After the $100 million warplane crash-landed onto the deck of an aircraft carrier - and then tumbled into the water - images of the crash appeared on social media, reports CNN. Thanks to Slashdot reader Thelasko for submitting the story!

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