New Delhi — An Indian official said that a British F -35B fighter jet trapped at an Indian airport for more than a month, spliting memes and cartoons on social media, flew on Tuesday after repair by a team of UK engineers.
One of the world’s most advanced and cost of about $ 115 million, Stealth Fighter was placed at Thiruvananthapuram International Airport in Kerala, southern state of Kerala due to a technical snag.
The aircraft had problems with hydraulic issues and its aids unit that have been fixed, said, the official of Thiruvananthapuram said, who were not authorized to talk with the media and requested oblivion.
The official said the aircraft would fly to a British aircraft carrier in Darwin, Australia.
The British High Commission and the UK Ministry did not immediately respond to the requests of comments.
Jet was on a regular trimming in the Arabian Sea in June when it went into bad weather and could not return to the Royal Navy’s leading aircraft carrier, HMS Prince of Wales. The aircraft turned into Thiruvananthapuram and landed safely on 14 June.
The trapped military aircraft manufactured by Lockheed Martin triggered the AI-Janit memes in India. The Kerala Tourism Department Social Media Post showed the aircraft with a fictional five -star review on the Termac surrounded by coconut trees: “Kerala is such a wonderful place, I don’t want to leave. Surely recommend.”
Top Officer of Tourism Department, K.K. Biju said that the post was in “good humor”.
“It was our way of appreciating and thanking the Britis, which is Kerala’s biggest inbound visitors to tourism,” said Biju.
Another cartoon posted on X showed the aircraft enjoying snacks with a group of locals against a beautiful background.
There were speculation in India that the aircraft could be partially destroyed and a cargo could be transported into the aircraft if the repair was unacceptable. The UK Ministry of Defense rejected speculation in a statement.
