Belgian Air Force: Grounded F-35 jet still operable
The Belgian Air Force stated on Tuesday that one of the country's initial F-35 fighter jets, which didn’t arrive with the other three on Monday, was grounded for "unplanned maintenance" but is still operational.
One of the aircraft -- identified as "FL-011" -- was not sent to the welcoming event "because in peacetime, security and safety are paramount," contrary to what some local news outlets claimed about the fourth jet, News.Az reports citing foreign media.
"We demonstrated the capacity to keep the right focus even during such a high-visibility event," authorities said, emphasizing that the jet was not inoperable.
Earlier Monday, three F-35 jet landed at Florennes Air Base after taking off from the US state of Texas last week, with a stopover in Portugal's island territory of Azores. Belgium’s King Philippe, the head of defense, and several federal ministers attended the welcoming ceremony.
The F-35s will gradually replace Belgium’s aging F-16 fleet, which has been in service for more than 40 years.
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