Lockheed Martin delivered a record number of F-35 stealth strike fighters last year.
The aerospace and defense conglomerate said 191 F-35s were delivered in 2025, surpassing the previous delivery record of 142 jets.
Annual production is now running five times faster than any other allied fighter, a welcome turnaround after years of delays linked to the platform’s scale, complexity, and cost.
The F-35 program recently reached 1 million flight hours, Lockheed officials said, and the global fleet has grown to almost 1,300 aircraft.
“I’m immensely proud of the F-35 enterprise for delivering on our production commitments, performing with excellence, and growing our global partnerships in 2025,” Chauncey McIntosh, vice president and general manager of Lockheed’s F-35 program, said in a news release. “As our warfighters continue to employ the F-35 to protect the interests of America and our allies around the world, we’re committed to continuing to push the latest technology into the hands of the warfighter to defeat any threat.”
The F-35 program reached several other important milestones during 2025, including the rollout of the first fighter for Finland, the first in-country aircraft for Belgium, and the completion of deliveries for Norway. Italy and Denmark announced plans to expand their respective fleets.
In September, the F-35 Joint Program Office (JPO) and Lockheed finalized an agreement on Lots 18-19 for the production and delivery of up to 296 F-35s for $24 billion. They are the largest production contracts in the program’s history.
Lockheed officials also noted that F-35s played an important role in suppressing Iran’s air defenses during U.S. airstrikes on suspected nuclear facilities there in June and downing Russian drones over Poland.
