This story had all the makings of a good Belgian joke. Unfortunately, it is real for our neighbors. After placing an order in 2018 for 5.6 billion euros for 34 fifth-generation F-35 fighters manufactured in the United States, Belgium finds itself stuck, due to its airspace being too small, writes LeParisien.

"As many local media outlets explained after the official fighter jet handover ceremony, which even King Philippe attended, the Belgian army will have difficulty using them. "For years, the Defence has suffered from a narrow airspace, so it has brand new F-35s , but no place for pilots to train", summarizes the daily Le Vif .

As a result, Defence Minister Theo Francken had to explain in a House committee this week that he had started discussions with Italy , Norway and the Netherlands to obtain authorisation for F-35 pilots to train in their airspace.

The controversies surrounding the arrival of the F-35s don`t stop there. While Brussels was supposed to receive its first four aircraft on October 13, only three arrived safely. Indeed, the fourth aircraft suffered a technical problem and had to make a much longer stopover in the Azores archipelago, in the middle of the Atlantic. The American manufacturer Lockheed Martin was dispatched to resolve the situation.

This fiasco may seem like a small revenge for France, whose Rafale was shunned by Belgium in 2018 when it was ordered. Worse, two weeks ago, the Belgian Minister of Defense reignited hostilities by sharing an editorial attacking the Rafale and Paris, in which it was stated that the Belgian F-35s will be "technologically superior to anything the French Air Force has to offer". But they still need to be used", - reads the article.