Britain’s new stealth jets grounded by bad weather

BRITAIN’S newest £100million warplane yesterday failed to touch down at its purpose-built RAF base as planned because of bad weather.

Four supersonic F35 Lightning fighters were due to travel from US Marine Corps Air Station Beaufort, South Carolina, to RAF Marham in Norfolk to usher in a new dawn for the RAF and Royal Navy.

But adverse weather meant the eight-and-a-half hour transatlantic crossing had to be postponed with service chiefs checking forecasts to see if they can try again today.

The short take-off and vertical landing planes, to be flown by RAF and Royal Navy pilots, will operate from the new £3billion aircraft carriers HMS Queen Elizabeth and HMS Prince of Wales.

Iconic

They will also operate from land-based runways, with RAF Marham having undergone a £250million upgrade to accommodate them. They are to be flown by the reformed 617 Squadron that made its name 75 years ago last month with the iconic Dambusters Raid on Nazi Germany.

The Ministry of Defence said the flights had been postponed due to rough seas off Canada, strong crosswinds in the Azores and low cloud at diversionary airfields in Spain.

A source said: “The sea state off Canada was described as hellish, with strong winds and Supersonic F35 fighters were due to fly from the US to RAF Marham a full-blown storm.” The Canadians issued a gale warning for yesterday and today for the whole of the east coast from the US border up to the Arctic.

The MoD declined to reveal the planned route but said several were available.

All options, including bases where the planes could divert to in an emergency, were affected.

The planes, to be followed in August by five more, were expected to carry out about eight air-to-air refuelling operations each using RAF Voyager tankers. RAF and Royal Navy pilots have been putting the F35s through their paces in America.

The planes will make their first flights from the deck of HMS Queen Elizabeth this autumn off the US coast.

Britain has committed to a £9.1billion programme to buy 48 of the jets by 2025, with a pledge to acquire a total of 138.

The F35 has a top speed of 1,200mph and though its range is just 518 miles, it can stay airborne much longer thanks to air-to-air refuelling.

It also has stealth technology making it virtually invisible to radar.