British nuclear submarines and Russian nuclear submarines are speeding to reach the wreckage of the F-35, which is the most expensive jet fighter in the world, in the waters of the Mediterranean Sea to which it crashed.
The cost of the F-35 is more than US $130 million, and is considered the most advanced in the world.
Sky News Arabia reported that the plane plunged into the Mediterranean, shortly after takeoff, as part of a routine exercise by the aircraft carrier "Queen Elizabeth", and the pilot managed to survive during the plane's crash, when it crashed. The aircraft was one of eight British fighter jets of this model that were on board the aircraft carrier, in addition to 10 American fighter jets.
The search for U.S.-made aircraft wreckage caught Russia's attention, especially since access to the wreckage would allow Russia to learn the secrets of this aircraft, such as a secret radar and sensors, which allow it to fly in hostile countries at supersonic speeds.
British Defense Secretary Ben Wallace told the British Sky News network that Russia was closely monitoring the "Queen Elizabeth" aircraft carrier, and revealed that Russian fighter jets were following the British aircraft carrier's movements during its return from its 7-month journey.
The British defense minister declined to say whether there were any Russian submarines searching for the fragments as well, and it is estimated that this is the first time an F-35 fighter jet has crashed in Mediterranean waters.
British media say a joint team from the UK and US are looking for the wreckage of the plane that crashed on Wednesday, and include divers, submarines, and special equipment brought to the area to extract large fragments from the seabed like giant inflatable bags causing large fragments to float to the surface.
A map published by the British newspaper Daily Mail shows that the plane crashed in an area near the coast of Egypt, where the British aircraft carrier passed on its way to the Far East, which attracted the attention of both Russia and China, before sailing towards the Mediterranean.
Searches in the area are accelerated so that rival powers like Russia and China do not reach the crashed plane.