Finally, UK fighter jet F-35B to say goodbye to Kerala after paying Rs 8 lakh in parking fee

More than a month after a British Royal Navy F-35B Lightning II fighter jet made an emergency landing at Thiruvananthapuram International Airport in Kerala owing to a technical glitch, the repairs have been completed, and the combat aircraft will take off from Kerala on Tuesday.

 

F-35B Lightning II, worth over $110 million and known to be one of the most advanced fighter aircraft in the world, made an emergency landing on June 14. 

 

According to media reports, the team of technicians from the UK repaired the glitch in the aircraft's hydraulic system.

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According to a Malayala Manorama report, the fighter jet was moved out from the airport's hangar on Monday, using a special vehicle. Further inspections of the aircraft will be conducted after it is parked in Bay 4.

 

A military transport aircraft from Britain is expected to arrive in Kerala on Tuesday to take back the 14-member expert team that came a few weeks ago to rectify the fighter jet's defect. The equipment brought to fix the defect in the aircraft's hydraulic system will also be taken back.

 

Air India will receive nearly Rs 8 lakh as rent for providing airport and hangar facilities for the fighter jet, reports Manorama. The combined amount of the parking fee for aircraft halted at the airport and the landing charges for aircraft that disembarked must be paid to the airport operators, Adani Airport Holdings Ltd.

Defence