Pentagon awards Lockheed Martin $177M for three F-35 flight test jets to accelerate delayed Block 4 upgrades and certifications.
Fighter Jets
The United Kingdom (UK), Italy, and Japan have taken a key step to stabilize the Global Combat Air Programme (GCAP), signing a short-term funding contract to maintain development momentum.
A USAF wargame finds current modernization plans insufficient to defeat a Chinese Taiwan invasion by 2035. F-47 and B-21 key to any viable strategy.
South Korea and Indonesia have agreed to transfer Indonesia’s first KF‑21 Boramae fighter jet prototype, bringing the long-running joint fighter program closer to its final stage.
The U.S. F-47 secures $8.5B in funding, GCAP lands a $908M contract, while Franco-German FCAS stalls over industrial disputes in 2026.
The fighters listed below represent the most capable operational combat aircraft in 2026, based on a mix of technological sophistication, combat capability, speed, stealth, and operational versatility.
Iran claims it shot down a second U.S. F-35 stealth fighter jet over central Iran amid Operation Epic Fury, with pilot survival unlikely.
South Korea has rolled out its first production KF-21 fighter, highlighting rapid development and growing defense ambitions.
The Global Combat Air Programme (GCAP), a joint sixth-generation fighter jet initiative involving the United Kingdom, Japan, and Italy, is facing uncertainty due to delays in British defense funding commitments.
US to receive F-35 jets without radars due to APG-85 delays, impacting combat readiness and fleet capability planning.