Canada has officially joined the Global Combat Air Programme (GCAP) as its first observer nation, gaining access to classified discussions on one of the world’s most advanced sixth-generation fighter aircraft projects.
F-35 Stealth Fighter Jet
American, Australian, and Japanese Lockheed Martin F-35A Lightning II stealth fighters have begun flying joint combat missions over northern Australia as part of Exercise Pitch Black 2026, one of the world’s largest multinational air combat drills.
Turkey is pushing to sell its Russian S-400 air defense system to win back access to the American F-35, with Qatar and the UAE named as potential buyers.
Patria has begun manufacturing F-35 fighter forward fuselages, landing gear doors, and F135 engine assemblies in Finland, and the company said the programme is progressing as planned.
Lockheed Martin Australia has begun construction of a new AUD 85.9 million Air Power Precinct in the Hunter region, marking a major investment in Australia’s future air and missile defence capabilities.
President Trump announced that the United States will lift its 2020 sanctions on Turkey and signaled openness to selling F-35 fighter jets to the NATO ally, marking a major shift after years of tension over Ankara’s Russian S-400 purchase.
The United Kingdom’s Ministry of Defence (MoD) confirmed that UK F-35 jets intercepted a Russian Tupolev Tu-142 “Bear-F” maritime patrol aircraft after it repeatedly approached the HMS Prince of Wales carrier strike group in the Norwegian Sea.
The Lockheed Martin F-22 Raptor remains one of the world’s most capable air superiority fighters, but its pilots do not use the advanced Helmet Mounted Display System (HMDS) that has become a defining feature of the newer F-35 Lightning II.
US lawmakers revive the F-35 pitch to Spain after the FCAS collapse, as Madrid weighs Turkey’s KAAN fighter instead.
The US Marine Corps has accepted 6 F-35B jets without radars, fitting ballast in the nose cones to maintain weight and balance. A delayed Northrop Grumman AN/APG-85 radar is the cause, and the Air Force and Navy will face the same situation later this year.