A F-35B fighter jet of the British Navy made an emergency landing at an airport in Japan after facing technical issues. As per a report by Japanese broadcaster NHK, the jet landed at Kagoshima Airport in Kirishima City just after 11.30 AM on 10th August.
The airport office said that the fighter pilot contacted air traffic control stating that he was experiencing a possible mechanical problem and wishing to make an emergency landing. Accordingly, the jet was allowed to land at the airport.
As a result, the airport’s runway was closed for around 20 minutes, and some scheduled flights were delayed. However, after the jet was moved to a taxiway and safety at the airport was confirmed, airport operations resumed.
Reportedly, the fighter jet is part of the British aircraft carrier, the HMS Prince of Wales. The British military is currently deploying several ships, including the Prince of Wales, to the Western Pacific. They are conducting a joint training with the Japan’s Maritime Self-Defense Force and the U.S. military until the 12th.
This is the second such incident with the F-35B of the British Navy, that too from the same carrier. Earlier in June, a F-35B made an emergency landing at Thiruvananthapuram in Kerala after facing bad weather and hydraulic system failure. The aircraft could not take off after landing on 14th June, and several teams of technicians failed to repair it at the airport for weeks.
After over three weeks, a Royal Air Force (RAF) transport aircraft carried equipment and experts to fix the jet. The jet finally left India on 22 July, after being stranded for five weeks.
While F-35 is one of the most advanced and complex fighter jet, its naval variant, the F-35B, is even more complex. This is because of the short takeoff and vertical landing capability.
