UK F-35B stealth fighter departs Thiruvananthapuram

The F-35B stealth fighter of the UK Air Force flew back on Tuesday (July 22) over a month after it made an emergency landing at the Thiruvananthapuram international airport due to technical glitches.

"A UK F-35B aircraft, which landed following an emergency diversion on June 14, departed today from Thiruvananthapuram International Airport. A UK engineering team, deployed since July 06 completed the repairs and safety checks, allowing the aircraft to resume active service. The UK remains very grateful for the support and collaboration of the Indian authorities and airport teams throughout the repair and recovery process. We look forward to continuing to strengthen our defence partnership with India.” a British High Commission Spokesperson said, as quoted by ANI.

Flew to Australia

According to a PTI report, after completing maintenance, the jet took off at 10.50 am and flew to Australia. The radar-evading stealth fighter was brought out of the hangar and parked at the airport bay on Monday.

The British Royal Navy F-35B Lightning fighter jet is part of the UK's most advanced stealth fleet.

Known to be one of the most advanced fighter aircraft in the world and worth over USD 110 million, the jet remained grounded at the international airport here since June 14 after it developed a technical snag.

Also Read: UK not to share repairing details of F-35B grounded in Kerala with India

Operated from HMS Prince of Wales

The aircraft operating from the UK Navy aircraft carrier HMS Prince of Wales was forced to make an emergency landing at the Thiruvananthapuram international airport as technical snags prevented it from landing on the aircraft carrier. It was repaired by a team of engineers from the UK.

The jet, which during its time in Kerala has sparked countless memes on social media, including a viral one from Kerala’s Tourism Department, which compared the stealth fighter to a laid-back tourist unwilling to leave the scenic natural beauty of the state.

Also Read: Kerala Tourism's F-35B meme goes viral after jet's emergency landing

Sparked memes

“Kerala, the destination you'll never want to leave. Thank you, The Fauxy. #F35 #Trivandrum #KeralaTourism,” stated the Tourism Department in a post on X, along with an AI-generated image of the F-35 B with a message saying, “Kerala is such an amazing place. I don’t want to leave. Definitely recommended.”

According to media reports, the UK authorities had refused to share the maintenance and technical details of the combat jet with India. The reports further stated that details of the F-35B's distress signal sent on June 14 when it was flying off the coast of Thiruvananthapuram have been removed from the flight radar data site.

(With agency inputs)