An unnamed foreign government is funding $18.79 million in development and integration work on a tailored F-35 variant, with the effort continuing through December 2030.
Lockheed Martin
Canada has reportedly paused the planned purchase of 16 UH-60M Black Hawk helicopters amid worsening trade tensions with the United States. The move comes as Ottawa reassesses its dependence on US defence suppliers, reviews its F-35 fighter acquisition and faces growing calls to strengthen domestic military manufacturing.
The US Marine Corps has demonstrated an eight-weapon StormBreaker ripple release from an F-35B, advancing efforts to engage multiple targets in a single pass. The test highlights the weapon’s precision-guidance capabilities and potential to reduce pilot workload, while software integration and additional testing remain critical to full operational fielding.
The first F-16 Block 72 fighter built for the Royal Moroccan Air Force (RMAF) has completed its maiden flight, opening the next stage of a major program to modernize Morocco’s combat aircraft fleet and strengthen its future airpower capabilities.
Finland has begun a new chapter in military aviation with the arrival of its first permanently based F-35A fighters in Rovaniemi, strengthening national defense, NATO interoperability and the country’s transition to fifth-generation airpower.
Lockheed Martin is preparing to deepen its aerospace manufacturing footprint in India if its C-130J Super Hercules proposal is selected for the Indian Air Force’s (IAF) 60-aircraft medium transport programme.
Belgium has received three additional Lockheed Martin F-35A Lightning II fighters at Florennes Air Base, expanding its in-country fifth-generation fleet to seven aircraft.
The Royal Canadian Air Force’s (RCAF) first F-35A Lightning II has completed its maiden flight at Naval Air Station Joint Reserve Base Fort Worth (FWH), Fort Worth, Texas.
Sensitive F-35 components reportedly diverted to Hong Kong have triggered a US security inquiry, congressional briefings and renewed scrutiny of the fighter’s global supply chain, spare-parts accountability and protection of stealth-related technology.
Germany has received its first F-35A Lightning II from Lockheed Martin as the country prepares to introduce 35 fifth-generation fighters into Luftwaffe service.