Earlier this week, the German Ministry of Defense announced where the future F-35A fighters for the German Air Force (Luftwaffe) will be assembled. Specifically, the choice of Lockheed Martin facilities in the United States has been revealed. This news dispels the initial assumptions regarding potential assembly at the facilities in Cameri, Italy.
The information was originally reported by specialized journalist Gareth Jennings, who, after verifying his data with Lockheed Martin and the F-35 Joint Program Office, confirms that both the final assembly process of the future German fighters and the subsequent verification processes will take place at the Fort Worth headquarters in Texas.
The original order for German F-35A fighters was finalized in 2022, with a total of 35 F-35A Lightning II aircraft ordered for a total of $8.4 billion. These aircraft will replace the aging fleet of Panavia Tornado aircraft in the Luftwaffe’s inventory. This was done within the framework of the defense procurement budget strengthening program that German Chancellor Olaf Scholz launched shortly after Russia’s invasion of Ukrainian territory.
It is worth noting that the Luftwaffe’s Tornado aircraft were certified for potential use of nuclear weapons, and the acquisition of the anticipated F-35A aircraft also fills that capability gap. The F-35A version recently received approval from the US Air Force to carry B61-12 thermonuclear bombs.
It is important to remember that the production and delivery of these fifth-generation fighters have been delayed, mainly due to problems with the so-called “joint simulation environments,” key elements for the initial operational evaluation of the F-35. In terms of numbers, this involved the manufacture of about 1,000 aircraft, of which 990 were delivered, all in the initial low-rate production phase. Large-scale production was recently authorized, specifically on March 12 by the Under Secretary of Defense for Acquisitions and Sustainment, Dr. William A. LaPlante.
In this regard, it was expected that the final assembly facilities located in Cameri would alleviate pressure on the production lines in the US. At identical production costs, the facilities covering over 101 acres with 11 assembly stations, jointly operated by Leonardo and Lockheed Martin, are the only ones in Europe with certified capacity to produce F-35s. However, at present, its production and assembly volume are still limited, with a rate of 15 aircraft produced per year, lagging behind the 130 planes that can be manufactured annually in Fort Worth.
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