The Malayali way of teaching the British a lesson

The Kerala Tourism Department has been running major promotional and advertising campaigns in an effort to attract tourists from across the world. Tourism Minister P.A. Mohammed Riyas, in particular, has to be applauded for implementing new and innovative New-Gen tourism ideas. What brings this to attention now is a recent advertisement by the Tourism Department that went viral on social media. The ad featured a “British model” relaxing under the lush green canopy of coconut trees. The English tagline read: “Once you arrive, you’ll never want to leave!” At first glance, it might seem like a typical tourism slogan. But the twist? The "British model" referred to in the image is none other than a cutting-edge British fighter jet that has been stranded in Kerala due to technical issues for the past twenty days!

The British Royal Navy's F-35B fighter jet didn’t stay back to admire Kerala’s beauty. Rather, it simply couldn’t leave — due to unresolved technical problems after it made an emergency landing at Thiruvananthapuram International Airport. But whoever turned this into a tourism ad deserves credit for creativity and a good sense of humour. In the age of internet trolls, such a tongue-in-cheek approach to social media advertising is sure to catch anyone’s attention. The F-35B jet had taken off from the HMS Prince of Wales, a British Royal Navy aircraft carrier anchored in the Indian Ocean, for a training sortie. But due to bad weather, it couldn't return to the carrier. As its fuel levels dropped, it sought and was granted permission for an emergency landing — which it completed safely.

All this happened on the night of June 14. Since then, the fighter jet hasn’t moved an inch. Initially, a hydraulic failure was reported. Then, one issue after another began to surface. Despite efforts by three British Royal Navy experts who flew in to inspect and repair the aircraft, the fighter jet remains grounded. Fearing exposure to the monsoon rains, the $110 million jet was moved to Bay No. 4 of the airport with Britain’s permission. Armed security has been deployed by central forces to guard it. Teams of expert engineers, including representatives from Lockheed Martin (the U.S. company that manufactured the jet), are said to be arriving "soon" — a promise that’s been ongoing for several days.

One can imagine the embarrassment faced by the British Navy as their state-of-the-art warplane was dismantled and examined in front of Indian engineers. The global media has picked up the story of how Britain’s fifth-generation warplane is stranded in a foreign land, and international defence analysts are now closely watching developments in Thiruvananthapuram. The British Royal Army is reportedly planning to bring in a massive cargo aircraft to somehow transport the jet back home. Regardless of how this ends, the one thing that's clear is that the F-35 fighter jet has earned itself some rather unwanted attention. But at the same time, Kerala Tourism managed to cleverly capitalize on it — turning the stranded jet into a model for a humorous and memorable advertisement. Only a Malayali could pull off a “teach the British a lesson” stunt with such flair!