A British Royal Navy F-35B stealth fighter jet worth £80m has been stranded on the tarmac of an airport in southern India for more than 10 days after it was forced to make an emergency landing. The British jet has been parked at bay 4 of Thiruvananthapuram International Airport in Kerala since June 14.

The F-35B Lightning jet, part of the HMS Prince of Wales Carrier Strike Group, encountered bad weather while flying about 100 nautical miles off the coast of Kerala. It made the emergency landing due to low fuel, later the jet was found to have suffered a hydraulic system snag. The pilot issued a distress signal at around 9pm local time last Saturday, triggering a full emergency protocol at Thiruvananthapuram airport, India media reported.

The fifth-generation stealth fighter was carrying out military drills with the Indian navy earlier in the week, according to The Telegraph.

“It was undertaking routine flying outside [the] Indian Air Defence Identification Zone with Thiruvananthapuram [airport] earmarked as the emergency recovery airfield,” India’s air force said in a statement.

A maintenance team from the HMS Prince of Wales later arrived, but was unable to repair the F-35B’s issue. A larger team from the UK is expected to travel to Kerala to assist in the technical work.

The Royal Navy is said to have turned down an offer to move the warplane to a hangar, this is likely due to the sensitive nature of the F-35’s classified systems.

For now the warplane remains on the monsoon-drenched tarmac, sparking speculation and curiosity from those visiting the civilian airport.

The fighter jets were the first to combine radar-evading stealth technology with supersonic speed and can reach a top speed of 1,200mph.

Earlier today it was revealed that the UK will buy at least 12 F-35 stealth jets that can carry nuclear warheads. Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer will announce the dramatic news a summit of NATO allies in The Hague that the new squadron will join an alliance mission that can be armed with US nuclear weapons.