September 17

What happened on September 17 in aviation and space history.

• September 17, 2013

  The Netherlands select the F-35A with a plan for 37 aircraft

  Institutional — The Dutch government confirmed the purchase of thirty-seven F-35As to replace its F-16s, as part of the defence budget presented that day. The decision closed years of political debate in which cheaper alternatives had been evaluated and the aircraft's noise had been a recurring argument. The Netherlands had been in the programme since its development phase.

• September 17, 2023

  The South Carolina "ghost jet": an F-35B flies on after its pilot ejects

  Accident — The pilot of an F-35B of squadron VMFAT-501 ejected in bad weather near Marine Corps Air Station Beaufort, and the aircraft flew on unmanned for more than a hundred kilometres before coming down in rural Williamsburg County. The Marine Corps publicly asked the population for help in locating the wreckage, and the episode became famous as the "ghost jet". The investigation found the pilot had ejected because of a cascading electrical failure that led him to believe the aircraft was lost.