Finland’s first F-35 delivery leaves one jet stranded in the Azores

One of the three Finnish Air Force F-35A Lightning II fighters assigned to the type’s first delivery flight to Finland remains at Lajes Air Base in the Azores, Portugal, after developing what the service described as a minor avionics fault.  

The aircraft, JF-511, was part of a six-aircraft Finnish and Belgian F-35 detachment that flew from the United States to the Azores on September 15, 2026. When the detachment left the island on September 18, the remaining five F-35s and the KC-135 aerial refueling aircraft supporting them continued without it  

It will be flown to Finland with the next group of F-35s during autumn 2026, the Finnish Air Force said in a statement published on September 20, 2026. 

Avionics warning forces F-35 to remain in the Azores 

According to Brigadier General Aki Puustinen, Chief of Staff of the Finnish Air Force, the aircraft’s fault monitoring system indicated a potential issue during the startup sequence. The crew attempted to resolve it, but once it became clear that further troubleshooting would delay the departure of the entire detachment, the engine was shut down so the issue could be investigated and repaired. 

“The issue was a minor avionics fault. The required spare part is currently being shipped to the Azores,” Puustinen said in the statement. 

The Finnish Air Force said the detachment could not delay its departure because of a single aircraft. It noted that, in peacetime military aviation, flights can be delayed or cancelled at a low threshold when technical anomalies are detected. 

No firm arrival date for stranded F-35

A Finnish Air Force F-35A Lightning II at Rovaniemi Airport following the type’s first delivery flight to Finland on September 18, 2026. (Credit: Finnish Air Force)The service said ferrying JF-511 to Finland on its own would not be practical, since crossing the Atlantic requires aerial refueling support. It did not say when the next group of aircraft is due to make the crossing. 

The two other Finnish jets, JF-510 and JF-512, entered Finnish airspace at 17:21 local time on September 18, 2026, and landed at Rovaniemi Airport (RVN), home of the Lapland Air Wing, at 17:45, escorted by F/A-18 Hornets, according to a separate Finnish Air Force release. 

US Air Force pilots flew the transatlantic legs. Both aircraft are undergoing post-ferry inspections ahead of an arrival ceremony scheduled for October 1, 2026. 

Belgium experienced a similar delivery hiccup in October 2025, when one of four F-35As bound for Florennes Air Base stayed behind in the Azores  after its pilot identified a technical fault. 

A new era in the Finnish Defence Forces! Finland’s two first F-35A Lightning II multirole fighter jets have arrived at Lapland Air Wing in Rovaniemi, Finland on 18 September 2026. #ilmavoimat #F35programme @Puolustusvoimat @thef35 @theF35JPO @LockheedMartin pic.twitter.com/5rwZ6fdJ9z— Ilmavoimat (@FinnishAirForce) September 18, 2026

Finland’s 64-jet transition begins

Finland has ordered 64 F-35As to replace its F/A-18C/D Hornet fleet, with deliveries running to the end of 2030. 

The first eight airframes are in the United States for initial training, a phase that began when JF-501 arrived at Ebbing Air National Guard Base  in Arkansas in January 2026, a month after the aircraft was rolled out in Fort Worth, Texas .The post Finland’s first F-35 delivery leaves one jet stranded in the Azores appeared first on AeroTime.

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