Stranded British F-35B fighter jet to fly out of Kerala airport on July 22

The fighter jet, after repairs, has been brought out of the hangar and is currently placed in the parking bay of the airport

Published on: Jul 21, 2025, 20:34:41 IST

By Vishnu Varma

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Kochi: Over a month after it landed at the Thiruvananthapuram international airport in Kerala and suffered a suspected hydraulic failure, the advanced British F-35B fighter jet is set to fly out on Tuesday after undergoing successful repairs, an airport official confirmed.

The British Royal Navy F-35B Lightning fighter jet being moved from the hangar to parking bay, in Thiruvananthapuram, on Monday. (PTI)

“The fighter jet, after repairs, has been brought out of the hangar and is currently placed in the parking bay of the airport. It has been refueled. The jet will fly out of the airport on Tuesday,” the official told HT.

The advanced stealth jet, belonging to the Royal Navy and part of the Carrier Strike Group aboard the HMS Prince of Wales, was repaired by a 21-member expert team armed with specialist equipment that arrived from the UK at the airport on July 6.

The airport official, who did not want to be named, said the expert team is likely to depart from Thiruvananthapuram on Tuesday or Wednesday in a special aircraft that will be flown in from the UK.

The F-35B fighter jet had made an emergency landing on the night of June 14 at the Thiruvananthapuram airport after reporting low fuel and adverse weather conditions during a routine sortie. Upon landing, the fighter jet developed an engineering issue, precluding its return to the aircraft carrier. Engineers from the HMS Prince of Wales had inspected the aircraft and concluded that the support of a UK-based engineering team was needed.

The fighter jet, loaded with several advanced military features, being stranded at the Kerala airport for over a month had sparked memes and jokes on social media. The incident had even led to Kerala Tourism coming up with a creative campaign to market the state.

“Kerala is such an amazing place, I don’t want to leave. Definitely recommend,” a caption, alongside an image of the jet in the backdrop of lush greenery, was posted on social media by Kerala Tourism.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Vishnu Varma
Vishnu Varma is Assistant Editor and reports from Kerala for the Hindustan Times. He has 10 years of experience writing for print and digital platforms and has worked at The New York Times, NDTV and The Indian Express in the past. He specialises in longform reportage at the intersections of politics, crime, social commentary and environment.Read More

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