While flying from the UK aircraft carrier HMS Prince of Wales in the Indian Ocean on the evening of June 14, 2025, a British Royal Navy F-35B stealth fighter jet became extremely low on fuel and had to make an emergency landing at Thiruvananthapuram International Airport in Kerala.
The pilot requested diversion to the pre-designated emergency airstrip in India due to unfavorable weather circumstances that made it impossible for the jet to safely return to its carrier.
In this episode, the Indian Air Force (IAF) was crucial. As the F-35B neared Indian airspace, it was successfully spotted, tracked, and recognized by its advanced network of radars, sensors, and command centers, known as the Integrated Air Command and Control System (IACCS). The aircraft was then certified for recovery by the IAF, who also worked with local authorities and offered all the assistance required for the safe landing, technical examination, and ultimate return to UK operations.
There was a lot of debate in India’s defense sector after the F-35B, a fifth-generation stealth-capable aircraft made to avoid most radar systems, was discovered. The F-35B is designed to be very difficult to detect with traditional radar equipment because of its low observable design and tiny radar cross-section (RCS). Following the IAF’s public declaration that it had “detected and identified” the jet in real time, there was conjecture as to whether India had made strides in the field of tracking stealth aircraft.
However, this interpretation is tempered by a number of circumstances. Luneburg lenses, which are detachable radar reflectors that purposefully improve the aircraft’s radar visibility, are commonly placed on F-35s during peacetime operations, particularly in foreign or neutral airspace.
This procedure lowers the possibility of misidentification or airspace mishaps by ensuring that friendly and civilian radar systems can monitor the jet with ease. Such flights, especially during ferry, training, or emergency missions, are routinely conducted in this manner. According to a number of sources, the F-35B was probably employing these reflectors and broadcasting its presence, therefore the IAF’s air defense network’s discovery of it was usual rather than exceptional.
Despite this, the IAF’s IACCS is a cutting-edge, national air surveillance and command system that combines satellite feeds, airborne warning and control systems (AWACS), ground-based radars, and sophisticated data fusion. In recent years, the system has undergone major upgrades to accommodate the increasing number of stealth-capable platforms in the area.
Although India’s air defense infrastructure is effective and ready, as evidenced by the IAF’s quick detection and handling of the British F-35B, there is no concrete proof that India has “cracked the stealth code” or made significant technological advancements in tracking stealth aircraft in combat situations.
The main factors contributing to the effective detection and identification of the jet were the emergency’s conditions, including standard peacetime protocols, the deployment of radar reflectors, and coordinated communication. The incident does, however, demonstrate India’s increasing proficiency in rapid response and airspace monitoring, enhancing the legitimacy of its integrated air defense system.
