A top-of-the-line British F-35B fighter jet recently became stranded at an airport in Kerala, in southern India, after a hiccup over the Arabian Sea — and has become something of a local celebrity.
As the British military works to find a way to bring it home, A.I.-generated images of the jet — an aircraft worth more than $100 million currently parked on the airport’s tarmac — have spread across India.
The region’s tourism agency has joined in, posting a fictitious five-star review from the plane on social media: “Kerala is such an amazing place, I don’t want to leave. Definitely recommend.”
The plane, which arrived at the airport in mid-June, may be grounded for a bit longer too, as British engineers scramble to figure out how to get it back to its home country.
How did it get stuck?
The jet was unable to return to its aircraft carrier while on a flight, the H.M.S. Prince of Wales, because of weather conditions and was diverted to the Thiruvananthapuram International Airport, the British High Commission in New Delhi said in a statement.
After landing at the airport, the jet developed an engine issue, the high commission said. Engineers from the aircraft carrier traveled to the airport and assessed the plane and decided that a British engineering team would be needed to get it off the ground again.
An official at the airport, who spoke on the condition of anonymity because of the sensitive nature of the events, said that British engineers had made a number of attempts to fix the jet over several days but were unable to get it off the ground. Other officials at the airport said it had likely developed a hydraulic issue, the official said.
The Royal Navy did not immediately respond to a request for comment about the jet.
When will it be fixed?
We don’t know.
The British High Commission said it didn’t have a time frame for repairing the jet, but the airport official said dozens of military personnel were expected to arrive at the airport on Saturday to try to get it home.
How are they going to do that?
There are a couple of options to get the jet back to Britain, the airport official said.
British engineers will likely try to fix it at one of the airport’s maintenance hangers, then fly it out.
If that fails, then it would have to be airlifted to Britain, the official said. To accomplish that, the jet would be partially dismantled and its wings removed.
What’s the jet doing in the meantime?
Six crew members from the aircraft carrier are at the airport, working in shifts, to keep an eye on the jet and its sensitive technology around the clock, the airport official said.
The Indian authorities are providing security for the crew members, the official said, and they are being given food and accommodation at the airport.
Why is there so much security?
The F-35B is a fifth-generation stealth fighter that’s operated by a number of countries, including the United States, said Christoph Bergs, an airpower analyst at the Royal United Services Institute, a defense and security research group in London.
“There’s lots of secrecy involving military aircraft in general,” Mr. Bergs said, but because the F-35B is used by a number of allies, “that makes it highly sensitive.”
“You don’t want unauthorized access where people can either interfere with the machine, or take very close-up pictures, or even start, you know, messing with the machinery itself,” he said.
The jet is also very expensive.
Britain is estimated to have paid around $110 million for the plane (and its accompanying support infrastructure), which is made by Lockheed Martin in the United States, Mr. Bergs said.
“When something goes wrong with the F-35 it tends to attract — very quickly — public attention because it’s a very high state-of-the-art aircraft,” he said.
What about that meme?
The meme review from the jet was created by The Fauxy, a satirical Indian website, and was repurposed by Kerala’s tourism department “in good humor,” said Biju K., Kerala’s tourism secretary.
Britons are the largest group of tourists who visit Kerala, many seeking traditional ayurvedic treatment, the region’s ancient temples or miles of beaches, Mr. Biju said.
“We thought the plane from the same country will go well as an ad with the Britishers,” he said.
Are others having fun with the situation?
Absolutely.
Within days of the jet’s stranding, a post listing it for sale — for a heavily discounted $4 million — was posted by the user “Donald Trumpan” on a fake Indian classified website.
A.I.-generated images of the plane have spread around the internet. In one cartoon posted on X, the plane enjoys some snacks under palm trees with a group of locals.
“No wonder it refuses to leave now — bro found peace, toddy, and banana chips,” the post read, using a local word for wine made from palm sap.
Part of the fascination is that technical issues with advanced military planes like this one are relatively rare, Mr. Bergs said. Still, he said, “We’ve got to recognize these things can happen and are a part of flying jet aircraft.”
Suhasini Raj is a reporter based in New Delhi who has covered India for The Times since 2014.
Jonathan Wolfe is a Times reporter based in London, covering breaking news.
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