Lockheed Martin sends three more F-35B Lightning II fifth-generation fighters to the UK

By: Maksim Panasovskiy | 22.11.2022, 14:32

The United Kingdom's military has received a new batch of fifth-generation F-35 Lightning II fighters. It consists of three aircraft.

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Great Britain is buying F-35B modifications that can take off using shortened runways. The arrival of the three fighters was announced by Royal Air Force spokesman Captain Phil Marr.

The United Kingdom intends to allocate $11.7 billion to buy 74 fighters by 2032. At the same time, Great Britain is currently experiencing a shortage of pilots. After the arrival of three planes the fleet of F-35B Lightning II has been increased to 30 aircrafts.

Three of them remain permanently in the US, where they are used for testing and pilot training. In addition, one fighter crashed in December 2021 during the first deployment of the aircraft carrier HMS Queen Elizabeth.

Source: Defense Brief