Lockheed Martin has delivered the 46th, 47th and 48th F-35B aircraft to the United Kingdom, fulfilling the initial procurement phase of the programme and completing the first contracted batch of jets for the Royal Air Force and Royal Navy, according to the company.
The three aircraft arrived at RAF Marham in Norfolk, home of the UK’s Lightning force, with Lockheed Martin describing the milestone as reflecting “close collaboration between defence forces and global partners, building readiness and capability to strengthen allied deterrence.” The company said British workers contribute to the broader F-35 programme, supporting more than 20,000 skilled jobs and contributing an estimated £45.2 billion to the UK economy over the life of the programme, with £22 billion already realised.
The delivery completes the 48 aircraft covered under the UK’s initial procurement contract, though the path to the government’s stated total of 138 aircraft remains unresolved.
No timetable or contract exists for purchases beyond the 48 now delivered, with the Defence Investment Plan the stated vehicle for resolving that question, a document that was originally expected last autumn and for which no publication date has yet been announced.
The completion of the initial batch also arrives against a backdrop of ongoing challenges with the F-35 programme more broadly. The Block 4 software upgrade, which is a prerequisite for integrating new weapons onto the aircraft including the UK’s SPEAR 3 cruise missile and the Meteor beyond-visual-range air-to-air missile, has run significantly late and over budget, with costs rising from an original estimate of around $10.6 billion to approximately $16.5 billion, and completion now anticipated around 2029.
Until Block 4 is delivered, the F-35B’s weapons options remain more limited than originally planned, with SPEAR 3 integration now targeted from financial year 2028-29 within the joint programme and Meteor integration not expected until the early 2030s.
The Strategic Defence Review published last year also reshaped the UK’s F-35 plans, introducing F-35A variants alongside the existing F-35B fleet and reducing the second batch F-35B order from 27 to 15 while adding 12 F-35As, meaning the eventual fleet will no longer be the single-variant force the original commitment envisaged.
A genuine question, as I really don’t know and I’d like to hear people’s ideas….. .. but if we stuck at 47 (plus 10 “nuclear” A versions)… would it matter… how many 5th gen do we need and are 4th gen absolutely fine… or are Typhoon/Rafale/Grippen obsolete? … How do decide on the mix? Of course we need to move forward – but 6th gen Tempest is still some time away. It’s no surprise that the DIP has been delayed, the game is complex and ever changing… something the “give ’em muskets and fly Sopwith Camels” brigade don’t understand. Having said that it really is time for DIP to be finalised.
4th gen are not obsolete but look how many F15’s the US has lost over Iran and A10’s compared to F35.
That’s more to do with the dumb leadership rather than the aircraft.
4th generation aircraft are not obsolete. They are fine for the air defence role, as only China so far has superior 5th generation stealth aircraft coming on stream. In attack though, they will increasingly act as a second wave behind the stealth/SEAD F-35s, for those forces that are acquiring F-35.
That said, it all depends on the 4th generation aircraft having been regularly upgraded, like the latest F-16s. In our case, the Typhoons are currently operating a 10-year old mechanical radar that is not up to scratch for modern air combat. The 40 tranche 3 Typhoons are going to be upgraded with a new AESA electronically scanning radar, the ECRS, at considerable cost. However, there is no intention to fit it to the 67 tranche 2 Typhoons, which will have to soldier on with inadequate kit until some far-distant point when Tempest arrives.
This seems like madness to put these aircraft at grave risk, but is dictated solely by lack of funds: our share of GCAP development requires some colossal funding over the next 10 years, maybe as much as £18 bn and no doubt a lot more when the real complexities of the project kick in. So there is little enough money to pay for the next batch of 27 F-35s, the 3 Wedgetails, the 14 Chinook ERs and the 23 AW-149s.
Fair comment.
The MOD never directly replaced the Tornado GR4 fleet. At its peak (1996-2003) RAF had 142
90 F35-A’s would do the job, if we could get the right weapons fitted / functional.
But how long would it take to procure that many and train up the pilots and support crews?
That’s a really big if.
The part of the block 4 upgrade that will allow integration of new weapons still seems to be a long way off. It’s likely that it’ll be avaliable in the early 2030s, you can factor a couple of years for the existing fleet to be upgraded, then we are in the mid 2030s and (assuming things go to target) Tempest will be the preferred platform
“4th gen are not obsolete but look how many F15’s the US has lost over Iran and A10’s compared to F35.”
What ?! 1+1 is not relevant and we don’t know flight mission profiles.
The dependency is on what the jet will be facing and if it’s getting any AEW help. If facing off against Russian Su-35s, the F35 armed with AMRAAM AIM-120D has a massive advantage, due to the Su-35’s large radar cross section (RCS) compared to the F35’s. Even when facing off against the Su-57, the F35 should still have the advantage, as the systems on the F35 are better. But the F35 must stay in the beyond visual range air to air missile (BVRAAM) zone, if it gets in the within visual range zone, the Su-57 will balance the playing field. Though, if the F35 is armed with ASRAAM rather than Sidewnder, the F35 should be able to get the shot in first due to the speed and range advantage ASRAAM has over other within visual range air to air missiles (WVRAAM), such as the R74.
Typhoon vs Su-35 depends a lot on what radar is fitted. If it has the legacy Captor-M, things will be fairly even, as the Su-35’s Passive electronically scanned array (PESA) radar, is very powerful, more so than the Captor-M. However, with Meteor, the Typhoon will be able to launch earlier even though its being tracked. Unless the Su-35 is carry the very long range R37, the Typhoon should be able to evade this missile, whilst the normal R77s are much shorter ranged than Meteor. However, this completely changes if Typhoon is fitted with the AESA Radar 2.
The Radar 2 is a lot more powerful than the Raven used by Gripen and the RBE2 used by Rafale. Primarily because it has a larger surface area of transmitter-receiver modules crammed in to the array, as the Typhoon’s nose is much larger than the Gripen’s or the Rafale’s. The Radar 2 will be a game changer for Typhoon, as it means there is a greater chance that it can illuminate the Su-35 without being detected. But importantly use the radar to stay outside the R77s engagement range and let Meteor do all the work.
The problem comes when 4th Gen aircraft are facing jets such as the Chinese J20 armed with PL-15. We always knew PL15 would be a dangerous opponent. The latest spat between India and Pakistan clearly demonstrated this. Compared to AMRAAM, the PL15 is wider and longer. The dimensions taken off the Pakistani fired PL15E India found nearly intact, showed it was 1″ wider and nearly 1ft longer. In stark terms this means it can hold a lot more fuel than AMRAAM, so will accelerate faster and go further. India suggests the weapon has a range of at least 200km (120 miles). Which would significantly outrange AMRAAM, and possibly matching Meteor. Plus the PL15E, is the “dumbed down” export version, the Chinese only version is expected to go that bit further.
If Typhoon with Captor-M is up against a J20, I would suggest the J20 will have an advantage. If the Typhoon has the Radar 2, it might be fairly even. A lot will depend on whether the Typhoon detects the J20 from the side or rear, as its frontal aspect has a pretty low RCS, especially compared to the Typhoon.
In a one on one fight at BVRAAM ranges, the 5th Gen aircraft will always have the advantages, due to its inherent stealth, but generally better sensors and how information is relayed to the pilot. Even though Typhoon is getting Radar 2, which by all accounts is awesome. The airframe is still a non-stealthy 4th Gen airframe, so it will have an immediate disadvantage against 5th and 6th Gen aircraft. Sadly the radar and other upgrades are 10 years too late. Which is probably why the RAF want more F35s, even though it has a limited weapons availability.
However all is not lost. If Typhoon was teamed with a 5th/6th Gen uncrewed air system (UAS)/loyal wingman, that included some decent sensors and a covert data-link. Typhoon would be able to stand-off a lot more, letting the UAS “recce” forwards. Which could balance the playing field against 5th Gen aircraft at least.
Somewhere between the first 4 & up to 14, UK F-35B, may be too difficult/expensive to upgrade. So we need to order another 14 F-35B just to stand still.
Not obsolete. Although I’m not an expert so if I’m wrong please correct me.
They have overlapping capabilities, like air to air capabilities, ground stike, so can both do air patrols, interceptions, dog fights etc.
However, for much of those roles, 90% of the time you are going to chose a typhoon to do it. This is because it has better kinematics meaning it’s faster and more agile, it also has a bigger weapons payload, making it better for air policing, interceptions, close range encounters and so on . But most importantly, it’s much cheaper per flight mile to operate and easier to maintain, so it’s logistically better to deploy on a day to day basis.
However, the F35 has much better stealth and sensors, meaning if you want to operate in enemy environments, F35 is really your only choice as it can avoid enemy defences and has a much higher chance of staying undetected because of it’s sensors and stealth, a typhoon simply couldn’t do this and would be shot down without a high degree of control over the skies.
It’s also mainly a beyond visual range fighter, so it can lock onto enemy aircraft much further away than they can lock onto it and shoot.
Not only that but an F35 is also an information gathering node, it can gather vast amounts of battle field data, analyze it and sent it to ground forces, other aircraft, to command etc. to create a much clearer battlefield for its allies. So its really is more than just a fighter jet.
So they compliment eachother quite well and if we switch purely to 5th gens, it would definitely weaken us Vs having a mix of 4th and 5th gens. it would mean slower interceptions of threats, and more money spent on a daily basis just to patrol and maintain our skies.
As for how much and what mix of 4th and 5th we should have, well that’s something only someone in the MOD, who has a lot more information than any of us, can answer. But I’m willing to bet the answer for how many 4th and 5th gens we need, is more than we currently have.
Just need to order 90 more and buy storm breaker.
And maybe some JSM and or LRASM.
We need more than 48 – my view is 80 is the bare minimum giving us 3 wings of 24 +8 for testing etc. this will also need replacements on a 1-2-1 basis so that would already make it 81 (as we have already lost 1).
this gives us 2 carriers worth + a maintenance / surge capability – although the reality is probably 24/36 will be available at any given time.
They are fairly maintenance heavy from what I understand.
the A variant is madness – it is parasitical to both the navy and tempest for little benefit. Whomever proposed this should be fired immediately
👍👍👍
Agreed. A is a money saving exercise dressed up as an enhancement, which hits the B force.
Depends on how many we get. If we get A as part of a broader move to complete 138 ( a boy can dream) and we end up with a mixed force of F35A and F35B then it’s a worth while to operate both. This is what was being indicated in the strategic defence review by lord Robertson. But if we are buying 10 F35A to run an OCF and then buying 62 F35B to save a few quid then it’s a waste of time and money.
Agreed. A big A order run alongside enough Bs to furnish Carrier Strike is another story.
Not happening with GCAP and the rest of the non military voices eating at the defence table, all cordially invited by HMG.
As I understand it it’s 12 “A” and 17 “B” so 12 and 64. The A’s are supposedly for an OCU, but with a nuclear capacity “should we be asked” to deliver an American weapon! So by the mid 2030’s we will have three squadrons of 12 operatioinal of the “B” version and the “A” ?? doing what.? So yes, it is a waste of money.
The A being the Operational Conversion Unit/ Dooms day tactical nuclear strike force.
Correct.👍
I dont agree with the logic of A at all – as its just parasitical in all ways
you buy a big fleet – treasury says why do we need Tempest
you buy a small fleet – treasury targets it or the B’s for cost cutting as its too expensive
Remember b’s are interchangeable with the USMC corps fleet – a key consideration in their selection as we work a lot with USMC
you buy either of the above and it takes money away from B fleet / typhoon / Tempest
what value do we get?
if we can get a good loyal wingman at £10m per unit and start using those with F35B’s that gives us space to develop Tempest.
Realistically we would then have a Naval fleet of F35B’s a diminishing fleet of Typhoons and a build up of Tempest
the plan should be for something like 240 manned fighters with 1k drone loyal wings. this probably means 80 F35b, 160 tempest (with interim of 80 typhoons +80 tempest)
we will be lucky to get 160 across both – which is not enough – The USMC has more fighters than the RAF – its a joke.
As a minimum the UK should look for a land force that is sized and equipped similar to USMC + a navy + home defence which should bring us to around 250k serving personnel (about same as France btw) – we are well short.
The B force will be quite large enough to equip the one operational carrier and have some aircraft over for the B’s other primary role, close air support for the land forces. It is completely unrealistic these navy fellows demanding 70, 80, 90 or 138 and a second operational carrier, just getting the Bs up to 62 is already more money than the RAF can afford.
The RAF is quite right to switch 12 of the order to the A version, which is a more capable fighter than the B, considerably cheaper and without what sounds to be the heavy maintenance burden that the B is imposing. Would that we could get more than 12 As!
I recall the Sea Harrier FA2 force was smaller? Not by much mind.
Yes and the Harrier FA 2 force was also uniquely British where as the F35B is an identical fleet of over 300 aircraft all sharing spares and upgrades.
I don’t see us having an issue operating A or B even in small numbers due to commonality (both are near identical to fly) and due to the large pool of NATO spares and expertise we are tapping into. It’s an eco system of thousands of planes.
My consideration is what’s the best way to combat Russia for the least amount of money and a massive increase in our F35 force is the quickest, cheapest and most effective way to do that.
A UK force of 3 F35A and 3 F35B squadrons backed by 6 Typhoon squadrons would allow the UK to dominate Russia in any European operation by decimating their air defence and removing any threat from their Air Force.
With no Airforce and no air defence the armies on the eastern flank of NATO can deal with Russia with no assistance from the British army.
No other conventional weapon system can change the balance in Europe so much for a few tens of billions over thirty years.
Surely we need enough to put on the carriers, with spare for maintainence, training etc. Have we even replaced the one that fell off the boat.
If criminal to spend millions of pounds on this equiment to have all of it sat not even ready.
What have we got ready like 20. Its not good enough.
A very expensive aircraft that can drop one one type of UK bomb and maybe fire an single UK Air to Air missile type.
Am I missing something?
A great deal but who cares?
😂
ASRAAM/AMRAAM and Paveway 4. The APG-81 radar also has electronic attack modes. Typhoon for 15+ years also only had 3 weapon types available until StormShadow/Brimstone integration from 2018 onwards.
Pause F-35A/B orders, and fund the procurement of extra P-8 Poseidon MPAs. They’re (only) about $50 million more per unit than current F-35Bs. Or, if that’s an impossibility, fund the procurement of unmanned MPA-variant Protectors. Or, fund the purchase of additional Merlins, with their full ASW capability.
A conflict with Russia will see the carriers take on an ASW role, ahead of a strike role. In that situation, F-35s aren’t running strike sorties against Murmansk – they just don’t have the legs or armaments for that kind of mission. They can, however, provide top-tier air defence for an ASW task group.
That mission, though, could be filled by the current fleet as it stands.
Or crazy suggestion, use the 16 MQ9B’s that we already paid for that are now useless for their primary mission to do MPA like everyone else in NATO.
Yeah, that too. They’ll need the full MPA kits though.
I’d be tempted by this….
The RN needs to remember that it’s primarily an ASW navy, and the RAF needs to remember that it’s primarily there to support and enable the RN.
And the Army. Thus Close Support, the RAF SHF and the RAF ATARF.
I’d go further and say the Army could be a projectile fired by the RN and the RAF when expeditionary warfare is concerned.
If we are headed back to a BAOR, though now further east, then that though is outdated.
Are all the F35Bs at the one base at Marham? Isn’t that potentially risky? If the fleet gets much bigger wouldn’t a bit of dispersion across 2-3 bases be a better way to go? Hope there’s some GBAD happening there and no gaps in the perimeter fencing.
Yes.
Yes, applies to all fleet types.
Yes, but more bases means more people and certain enhancements.
No, nothing beyond what minimal Rapid Sentry and ORCUS are available.
There are, in certain places, airfields have huge perimeters!
We have four ORCAS systems in operation and only three fast jet bases in the UK. 11 Rapid Sentry systems operate by the RAF regiment.
Based on current defense procurement records and recent reports through early 2026, here is the breakdown of the UK’s acquisitions for these two counter-drone systems.
ORCUS Counter-UAS System
The UK Ministry of Defence (MoD) initially purchased four baseline systems from Leonardo.
• Status: These were acquired as part of the Royal Air Force’s (RAF) SYNERGIA research and development programme.
• Purpose: ORCUS is a “soft-kill” system designed to detect, track, and jam the radio-frequency links of hostile drones. It achieved Initial Operating Capability (IOC) following trials and has been used to protect major UK airports and RAF airbases.
• Composition: It integrates technology from several UK companies, including Blighter surveillance radars, Chess Dynamics electro-optical trackers, and Enterprise Control Systems (ECS) RF inhibitors.
Rapid Sentry System
The exact number of Rapid Sentry systems purchased remains unconfirmed in public government records, though industry indicators point toward a specific quantity of integrated sensors.
• Estimated Numbers: While the MoD has not released a final tally for the launchers themselves, the UK purchased 11 Saab Giraffe 1X radars in 2023 specifically to support mobile counter-UAS capabilities. It is widely believed that these radars form the sensor backbone for the Rapid Sentry units currently in service.
• Role: Rapid Sentry is the “hard-kill” layer of the RAF’s layered defense. It uses the Lightweight Multirole Missile (LMM), also known as Martlet, to physically intercept and destroy drones that bypass electronic jamming.
• Deployment: As of 2026, the system has seen active combat validation, having been deployed to the Middle East (including Kuwait, Iraq, and Jordan) to counter regional drone threats.
Comparison Summary
Yep, that’s my understanding too, 4 Orcus.
11 RS seems logical by the number of radars.
Far too few.
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Good news that 48 aircraft have been delivered, these should be given to the RN and a second batch of 48 ordered for the RAF. With the savings order another squadron of Typhoons and some additional P-8 Poseidon and let’s see a tempest prototype in the air.
What savings?
If they’re given to the RN, where is the RN budget for them? I don’t believe the RN has such a budget. And where are the FAA crews for 47 jets?
Then they’re at an RAF Station. Are we going to make that a RNAS, with the thousands who work there too?
In an ideal world, yes, an all FAA asset.
In the real world, the aircraft I believe are RAF owned.
The wider fleet is a joint RAF FAA undertaking regards crews, ground support, and command.
It seems like almost every article on here right now in some way or other links to the defence investment plan. When this thing arrives it had better be something special. Not perhaps in terms of lists of shiny things we are going to buy, but perhaps as importantly in terms of what it says about how things will be specified, selected, paid for and delivered in future.
It’s almost more the issue of how they fix procurement that matters now and less so what they actually buy (though I’m certainly not ignoring the urgent need to buy stuff).
My prediction is much will be already known, but reannounced for effect.
Standard HMG.
There’ll be a few carrots, hopefully, but beware the small print.
Thank you Armchair and agreed that the F35B’s should all go to the Fleet Air Arm, ideally with a follow on order on 12 F35B’s for the RN and 12 or more F35A’s for the RAF. Retain Tranche 1 Typhoons, such as are left, and order 24 Tranche 5 Typhoons for the RAF. We can then start to repair the damage done by 2010 Defence Review!
There may be an argument for aiming to hold a total fleet of 70 F-35 ‘A’s and ‘B’s and investing in more unmanned drones and Tempest with the allotted type budget? Air warfare is likely to undergo huge changes as a mixture of advanced technologies, such as AI and robotics, plays a significant role in air warfighting. Within the next decade we could see many of today’s so-called advanced defence systems witnessing early obsolescence.
I wonder how many of the current fleet of F35B’s are fully serviceable (or useable) and have a long term operational future of greater 5+years? I suspect a good number of the early F35Bs are limited in what they can do for software reasons and are likely a maintenance nightmare? Would they be better employed as pure Fighter ac for defence of the Carriers rather than use then for Strike missions. Just a thought.
PS: I still don’t see the military need for large carriers in the North Atlantic if that is to be our future ‘playground’. More P8’s and E7’s would seem more useful for that region.
At least 138 and up to 150 units were to have been ordered by 2012 as per original plans and financial provisions. This entire project is a story of delayed capabilities and subsequant / concurrent reduction in commitments.
24 years since F35 was first contracted and it still has not fullfilled adequate weapon integration….sad!
I’m sick and tired of the vile Labour Government using the “Defence Investment Plan” to hide behind.
The serial liar Starmer and his disgusting cronies are taking the country and the military for utter fools.
The sooner Labour are decimated the better.
So we now have 1/3rd of what we need with the balance not even ordered? The pattern of failing to ordered equipment for some reasons that amount to planed avoidance is negligence on a colossal scale. War is coming and we sit on our hands.