The U.S. Dept. of Defense approved $238 million more for Lockheed Martin’s purchasing activities in advance of the start of production for Lot 20 of the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter. The “undefinitized” award is a modification to an $869.9-million, November 2024 assignment that covers procurement of long-lead materials, parts, and components, plus associated support services for next round of F-35s to be built – but not necessarily for the U.S. Air Force, U.S. Marine Corps, or U.S. Navy.
The Pentagon’s announcement noted the modification is meant to cover procurement “in support of the F-35 Lot 20 production aircraft for non-U.S. Dept. of Defense partners and Foreign Military Sales customers.
Work will be carried out by Lockheed mainly in Texas, but also in California, Florida, Maryland, New Hampshire, and in the U.K. and Italy. The award will cover activities through May 2031.
The F-35 is a series of fighter jets deployed for ground attack and combat, and available in three variants, for the USAF, USMC, and USN, and defense forces of more than a dozen other nations. It is by far the largest and most expensive U.S. defense program, with hundreds of program participants and suppliers.
The F-35’s Lots 18 and 19 are in production currently, though Lockheed and the Pentagon have not yet finalized the production scope in terms of unit numbers and cost. The cost-overruns in the program have strained the relationship between the DoD and Lockheed, and the situation is also complicated by the ongoing Technical Refresh-3 that will update the F-35’s propulsion system and warfare capabilities.
Lockheed has previously indicated it plans to deliver more than 150 F-35 jets annually from 2025 onward.
