Overview

• The British High Commission confirmed it has accepted an offer to move the jet into Thiruvananthapuram’s Maintenance Repair and Overhaul hangar.
• A 40-member British maintenance team and a specialist towing vehicle are poised to transfer the aircraft once Lockheed Martin engineers and equipment arrive.
• The F-35B remains secured at Bay 4 under Central Industrial Security Force guard with logistical support from the Indian Air Force.
• The jet’s short take-off and vertical landing capability depends on complex hydraulics, and global sustainment backlogs have extended major F-35 repair times.
• The fighter declared an in-flight emergency on June 14 after running low on fuel during return from Indo-Pacific exercises with HMS Prince of Wales.