Lockheed Martin has delivered four F-35 Lightning II aircraft to the U.S. Air Force and Marine Corps, the company announced today.
Orlando Carvalho, Lockheed’s executive vice president and general manager for the F-35 Program, said the delivery is a significant development in the program.
The operational aircraft now outnumber the test planes 16 to 14, marking the program’s transition from development and flight testing to low-rate initial production, he added.
Three F-35A conventional takeoff and landing jets will be assigned to the USAF’s 33d Fighter Wing and one F-35B short takeoff and vertical landing aircraft will be assigned to the 2nd Marine Aircraft Wing’s Marine Fighter/Attack Training Squadron 501.
According to Lockheed, the four fifth-generation fighter planes are the first jets manufactured for the LRIP Lot 3.
These aircraft are built with advanced stealth with fighter speed and agility, fully fused sensor information, network-enabled operations and advanced sustainment.
The F-35s have been formally accepted by the Defense Contract Management Agency and will be based in Eglin Air Force Base, Fla.