Lockheed Martin has delivered 191 F-35 Lightning II aircraft in 2025, breaking its previous record of 142 jets in a single year.
The current annual production rate for the F-35 now stands at five times higher than that of any other allied fighter platform still being manufactured, according to company figures.
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Earlier this year, the F-35 programme surpassed one million flight hours.
In 2025, the project team also rolled out its latest software release, TR-3, and maintained a global fleet approaching 1,300 operational aircraft.
Over the same period, the aircraft saw operational use in several military contexts.
These included its involvement in suppressing Iranian air defences during Operation Midnight Hammer, accumulating nearly 5,000 mishap-free flight hours in a US Marine Corps F-35B deployment, and the shooting down of Russian drones over Poland by NATO F-35s.
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By GlobalDataOver the year, international customers have increased their F-35 orders, with Italy and Denmark adding 25 and 16 aircraft to their respective fleets.
Finland’s first F-35A fighter, JF-501, completed final assembly last month and was presented at Lockheed Martin’s facility in Fort Worth, Texas, according to the Finnish Air Force.
Belgium also received its first domestically based aircraft, and Norway completed delivery of its fleet.
In September, the F-35 Joint Program Office and Lockheed Martin finalised agreements covering Lots 18 and 19 for up to 296 fighters valued at $24bn.
The arrangement represents the largest production contracts yet in the programme’s history.
Both parties also signed an Air Vehicle Sustainment Contract supporting maintenance activities across the fleet from 2025 onwards.
F-35 Lightning II Program vice president and general manager Chauncey McIntosh said: “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.
“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.”
