What is the F-35?

The F-35 grew out of the Joint Strike Fighter program, which in 2001 chose Lockheed Martin's proposal over Boeing's to replace several fleets at once: the F-16, A-10, first-generation F/A-18 and AV-8B Harrier. That's where the three variants come from. The F-35A operates from conventional runways and is the most numerous; the F-35B has a lift fan coupled to the engine and a swiveling nozzle to take off short and land vertically from amphibious ships; the F-35C has a larger wingspan, reinforced landing gear and a hook for catapults and arresting cables on US aircraft carriers.

More than its speed (around Mach 1.6) or maneuverability, its value lies in its low radar observability, the AN/APG-81 AESA radar, the Distributed Aperture System that provides 360-degree vision projected onto the pilot's helmet, and sensor fusion, which presents a single tactical picture instead of scattered data. A single Pratt & Whitney F135 engine gives it around 190 kN (43,000 lb) of thrust with afterburner. Weapons are carried in internal bays to preserve the radar signature, though it can carry external loads when stealth isn't a priority.

The Marine Corps declared the F-35B operational in 2015, and the US Air Force did the same for the F-35A in 2016. Since then, more than a dozen countries have adopted it, including the United Kingdom, Italy, the Netherlands, Norway, Japan, Australia and South Korea, and production has surpassed a thousand aircraft delivered (as of September 2026). The program has been criticized for its development and sustainment costs, but it has become the leading Western fighter of its generation.