Dear F-35B, Kerala will miss you da!

The $109-million British aircraft that made an emergency landing at Thiruvananthapuram on June 14 has become a topic of memes

The fighter aircraft, said to be one of the most advanced, has become a star in the social media circle, not just in Kerala but across India. Here, it is seen munching chips at a roadside teashop with locals.

It seems this guest surely knew that, in this part of the globe, visitors are seen as Gods in disguise. And in God’s Own Country, life is splendid — especially for tourists.

The guest? An F-35B. The $109-million jet had made an emergency landing at the Thiruvananthapuram international airport on June 14, after taking off for a training sortie from the British carrier HMS Prince of Wales in the Arabian Sea.

Efforts to fix the “technical snag” have so far been futile. Now, a “high-level technical team” from the UK is set to land in Thiruvananthapuram on Saturday to chalk out an exit plan for the fifth-gen stealth fighter made by the USA’s Lockheed Martin.

A meme doing rounds on the fighter aircraft getting an Aadhar card.

A meme linking the F-35B to a recent political controversy.

Reports say that if the team fails to revive the aircraft, it might well be dismantled and “parcelled” to Britain on a military cargo plane.  
Now, over the past two weeks, this unexpected guest has emerged as a meme star of India. Perhaps, this is the first time a military machine has become such a social media darling.  

The latest meme circulating across the nation has even issued the jet an Aadhaar card under the name ‘F35 B Nair’. Another popular meme features Bollywood veteran Johnny Lever trying to jump-start the aircraft. Kerala netizens too have embraced the lethal war machine as one among its own. One series shows a ‘humanised’ jet in ‘naadan’ settings — sipping toddy, munching on banana chips, “finding peace” at a humble, roadside chayakkada, surrounded by bright-eyed, mundu-clad locals. In another, it’s seen celebrating Onam.

Another political issue featuring in one of the memes on the fighter aircraft.

But alongside the satire, the aircraft has been cleverly co-opted for a quick marketing boost. Kerala Tourism released a cheeky social media post in which the fighter jet declares its love for the state — so much so, it refuses to leave. Milma, meanwhile, showed a British pilot chilling by the aircraft, sipping on the brand’s ‘Jooy’ milkshake.  

Beyond the border, a Manchester-based eatery named Kerala Curry House joined in with its own appeal: asking the plane to “come back home” since the flavours it enjoys in Kerala are available in the UK too. There are socio-political jibes as well. In one meme, union workers stare at the stranded aircraft on the tarmac, with the caption suggesting that it will be allowed to take off only after nokkukooli (gawking charge) is paid.

The setting fit perfectly with a yesteryear blockbuster 'Vellanakalude Naadu', and the social media was quick to lap it up in memes.

There’s even a dig at the Waqf board, parodying its claims over properties by suggesting the aircraft now falls under its domain. Snippets from the iconic 1980s Malayalam film 'Vellanakalude Naadu' have also been superimposed onto the jet. In one edit, Shobhana’s character demands the vehicle be removed immediately or face a fine, while Mohanlal’s character fumbles.

Yes, of course, there is one showing Kuthiravattom Pappu asking for that ‘cheriya (small) spanner’.
Amid all the jokes, the hapless aircraft stands stoic, waiting for emancipation. Time for some touching ‘goodbye, miss you’ memes now.

Here's us wishing you blue skies and tailwinds!