British fighter jet makes emergency landing in Japan

KAGOSHIMA(Japan): A British F-35 stealth fighter jet made an emergency landing on Sunday at the Kagoshima airport located in south-western Japan due to a malfunction, airport officials said, as reported by Kyodo News.

According to Kyodo News, some departures and arrivals of commercial flights at the airport were affected when a runway was closed for approximately 20 minutes following the incident, which occurred at around 11:30 AM, as officials stated.

No injuries were reported.

Kyodo News noted that British forces have been conducting a joint drill with Japan’s Maritime Self-Defence Force and American forces since August 4, which will continue through next Tuesday, having dispatched an aircraft carrier strike group to the western Pacific.

Earlier in July, a British F-35B fighter jet left India after making an emergency landing in Kerala’s capital city of Thiruvananthapuram due to a hydraulic system fault.

The fighter jet had made an emergency landing at the airport on June 14. The British Navy aircraft is a part of the UK Navy aircraft carrier HMS Prince of Wales.

The fighter jet was out on a routine sortie when it developed a snag and could not land on the ship. The plane reached the Thiruvananthapuram airport, which was designated as the emergency recovery airfield, and requested emergency landing permission.

The Indian Air Force provided all required support and assisted in the process, including refuelling.

British Navy’s F-35 fighter jet finally took off from Thiruvananthapuram International Airport on July 22 after remaining grounded at the airport for over a month following a fault in the hydraulic system.

A British High Commission Spokesperson had expressed gratitude to the Indian authorities for the support offered in the repair and recovery process of a UK F-35B aircraft.

In an official statement, the British High Commission Spokesperson said, “The UK remains very grateful for the support and collaboration of the Indian authorities and airport teams throughout the repair and recovery process”, the statement added.

The High Commission Spokesperson underscored in their remarks, “We look forward to continuing to strengthen our defence partnership with India.”

F-35Bs are highly advanced stealth jets, built by Lockheed Martin, and are prized for their short take-off and vertical landing capability. (ANI)