British F-35 engineer shortfalls to take years to fix

The Ministry of Defence expects it will take three to four years to resolve the engineer shortages affecting the UK’s F-35 programme, according to statements made in response to Parliamentary questions.

Ben Obese-Jecty MP asked the Ministry of Defence what steps were being taken, and how long it would take, to address the shortfall identified in the Public Accounts Committee’s report ‘The UK’s F-35 stealth fighter capability’.

The committee found that engineering gaps had become a major constraint on aircraft availability and output.

Defence minister Luke Pollard said the Ministry of Defence has “increased its recruitment of engineers significantly in the last two years”, including through joining bonuses and expanded training capacity to accelerate the pipeline. He added that the RAF has introduced a Financial Retention Incentive to slow the outflow of experienced personnel.

Pollard acknowledged that the shortages are a recognised problem inside the F-35 enterprise. He said it will take “three or four years” to reach required staffing levels because of the time needed to train new engineers.

The Public Accounts Committee reported that the MoD had previously misjudged how many engineers the F-35 programme required. It described engineering shortages as one of the main reasons why F-35 availability was “poor” and consistently below departmental targets in 2024 and early 2025.

Pollard said the Ministry of Defence will respond formally to the committee’s recommendations through the Treasury Minute process. He noted that recruitment and retention remain “one of the top two priorities for the Chief of the Defence Staff.”