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RAF F-35B grounded in India
A Royal Air Force (RAF) F-35B is now grounded for more than two weeks in India. The Lightning II did an emergency landing at Thiruvananthapuram’s civilian airport on Jun. 14, 2025 after being forced to divert from HMS Prince of Wales aircraft carrier.
The carrier and the aircraft were taking part in the Royal Navy’s flagship deployment of 2025, Operation Highmast, in the Indo-Pacific.
As reported by UK Defence Journal, Ben Obese-Jecty, the Conservative MP for Huntingdon, talked about the incident in the House of Commons on Jun. 30, who asked the government to clarify what was being done to secure the jet and return it to operational service. “What steps are the Government taking to recover the plane, how much longer will that take, and how will the Government ensure the security of protected technologies on the jet while it is in the hangar and out of view?” he asked.
The aircraft is under UK control, with RAF personnel watching over it around the clock, Luke Pollard, the Minister for the Armed Forces, said;
“We continue to work with our Indian friends who provided first-class support when the F-35B was unable to return to the Prince of Wales when on a flight mission. I am certain that the security of the jet is in good hands because Royal Air Force crew are with it at all times.”
Operation Highmast
It seems that the F-35B was not able to recover on the Prince of Wales because of a technical issue. Nevertheless, the cause of the incident has not been officially disclosed. The Lightning II has been moved to a secure hangar at Thiruvananthapuram International Airport after the Indian Air Force (IAF) and civil aviation authorities granted immediate clearance for the aircraft to land.
Although no timeline has yet been publicly confirmed, engineers and logistics support teams have since been deployed to assess options for its recovery.
As already reported, Operation Highmast represents how UK defence is committed to embracing innovation and advanced technology, while reinforcing the importance of multinational collaboration. It is a unique opportunity to train and develop military interoperability and how allied forces can integrate their assets to advance global security. This deployment, characterised by the presence of world-class vessels alongside fifth-generation aircraft, marks a significant advancement in the Lightning programme.
The sophisticated capabilities of the F-35B Lightning is prominently on display during this deployment.
This deployment marks the most ambitious undertaking by the UK CSG since the HMS Queen Elizabeth’s global voyage in 2021. HMS Prince of Wales will navigate the Mediterranean, Middle East, Indian Ocean, and Pacific, conducting high-end exercises with significant allies globally.
The Lightning
The RAF F-35B Lightning is a stealth aircraft operating alongside the Typhoon. A multi-role machine, Lightning is capable of conducting air-to-surface, electronic warfare, intelligence gathering and air-to-air missions simultaneously.
The Lightning has advanced sensors, mission systems and low- observable technology, otherwise known as stealth, that allows it to operate undetected in hostile environments. Using the integrated sensors, the pilot is provided with unprecedented situational awareness of the battle space.
The pilot is then able to share this information with other platforms using secure data links, or use this information to employ its weapons or electronic attack capability. Lightning is a short take-off and vertical landing aircraft that can operate from aircraft carriers and in austere environments. 617 Squadron reformed as the first front-line Lightning squadron in 2018, comprising RN and RAF personnel, followed by 207 Squadron – the Operational Conversion unit – in 2019. Lightning achieved its Initial Operational Capability (IOC) in December 2018 and became IOC (Maritime) in December 2020.
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