Six F35-B Lightning warplanes, the U.K.'s newest fighter, have arrived at a British air base on Cyprus for training and a systems test in the aircraft's first overseas deployment.

The jets from 617 Squadron, flown by three British Royal Navy and three Royal Air Force pilots, touched down at RAF Akrotiri on Tuesday for what officials said will be a six-week deployment on the eastern Mediterranean island nation as part of Exercise Lightning Dawn.

RAF Akrotiri Station Commander Christopher Snaith said the deployment will let pilots put the aircraft through its paces, test logistics and sharpen ground crew training.

Snaith said the training aims to prepare the aircraft for its first deployment aboard the U.K.'s new aircraft carrier, HMS Queen Elizabeth, and to develop its strike capability.