ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. — It’s been more than 24 hours since an F-35B fighter jet crashed in Albuquerque. Crews are still working on cleaning up the crash site.

Despite some criticism on the cost and efficiency of the F-35 program, the jets are considered relatively safe. Dan Grazier with the Stimson Center told KOB 4 that in the U.S. no crashes have resulted in deaths.

Lockheed Martin had confirmed that the jet was traveling from Fort Worth, Texas to Edwards Air Force Base in California when it stopped at Kirtland Air Force Base to refuel. It crashed shortly after taking off from Kirtland AFB. The pilot – who ejected before impact – was taken to UNM Hospital.

“From a safety standpoint, the F-35 so far is a remarkably safe aircraft,” Grazier said. “When you consider the number of aircrafts that are being built, the number of flight hours that the program has accumulated since they started flying back in 2006, the crashes are actually relatively rare.”

Grazier said the F-35 program is the largest, most expensive military acquisition program in history – right now the total program costs about $2 trillion. F-35s are the first line of defense for the U.S. and our allies.

The F-35B, which is the model in this crash, costs about $145 million.