Lockheed Martin wants to “supercharge” F-35 after NGAD loss
Lockheed Martin anticipates reaching 3,500 F-35 fleet numbers worldwide. (Photo: Lockheed Martin)
The investment in technologies developed for Next Generation Air Dominance (NGAD) aircraft bid will now be applied to its F-35 and F-22 aircraft, according to Lockheed Martin CEO James Taiclet.
Lockheed Martin will “not protest” the US Air Force’s (USAF) decision to award Boeing the NGAD F-47 contract and instead look to “supercharge” its F-35 from the technology investments made, CEO James Taiclet said in the company’s Q1 earnings call on 22 April.
Lockheed Martin, which was beat out by Boeing for the sixth-generation aircraft contract on the 21 March, was the other competitor for the US$20 billion contract in a two-company race after Northrop Grumman dropped out in 2023.
Taiclet confirmed to investors during the call that the company had received a classified debrief and feedback from the USAF
Our news & analysis is now part of Defence Insight®
A Basic-level or higher Defence Insight subscription is now required to view this content.
More from Air Warfare
-
![October crewed air review: Israel’s Apache deal bets on crewed aviation in an uncrewed age]()
October crewed air review: Israel’s Apache deal bets on crewed aviation in an uncrewed age
Israel’s $1 billion Apache helicopter order highlights the continued demand for crewed attack aviation, while growing integration with uncrewed systems could shape future modernisation and procurement decisions.
-
![Connecting the layers: how networks can secure the future of European air defence]()
Connecting the layers: how networks can secure the future of European air defence
The rise of drones has reshaped the threat landscape for all European militaries. For industry, future defensive strategies must carefully balance a mix of passive and active measures to address the evolving danger, based around a highly integrated and responsive network of sensors and effectors.
-
![October drone digest: France and Lithuania advance loitering munition procurements as global spending surges]()
October drone digest: France and Lithuania advance loitering munition procurements as global spending surges
Recent procurement developments in France and Lithuania highlight the growing demand for loitering munitions, with global annual spending forecast to increase nearly 50-fold between 2020 and 2029.
-
![Quantum Systems details 480km/h Ukrainian interceptor as production scales up]()
Quantum Systems details 480km/h Ukrainian interceptor as production scales up
Quantum Systems’s Ukraine-made interceptor SPYS is thought to cost approximately 10 times less than Russia's jet-powered uncrewed aerial systems and is being produced at scale.
