The delivery of F-35s to Poland is delayed – mass media
20 April, 2023 F-35A fighter. Photo from open sources The transfer of the first US-made fifth-generation F-35A fighter jets to Poland is delayed.
Defence24.pl learned about this from unofficial sources. F-35As from batches scheduled for delivery to the Polish Air Force in 2026 and 2027 will arrive later than previously planned. A Polish publication has unofficially learned that the delivery of the components of the Polish F-35s is delayed compared to the original plans.
The delivery of six fighter jets scheduled for 2026 was initially planned to start in March and be completed in June of the same year. However, the current schedule calls for deliveries to take place in November and December 2026.
F-35A fighter jet. Photos from open sources
In turn, four more aircraft, the transfer of which was originally planned for the first half of 2027, should be delivered at the end of the year.
The Polish online media notes that delivery dates might still change. They will finalize when the Pentagon places an order for the production of batches of fighter jets from which they will be delivered in Poland. The contract to supply the aircraft for the Polish Air Force was awarded under the FMS (Foreign Military Sales Program) procedure as part of a broader plan to produce F-35s for the US military and foreign customers.
Deliveries of the first fighter jets are scheduled to begin in 2024, with several aircraft initially remaining in the US and being used to train Polish pilots. The construction of the first aircraft has already started in April 2022. The first component was the node of the central wing of the fighter fuselage.
It is expected that the first F-35A fighter jets should arrive at the Polish airbase in the city of Lask in 2026.
Mateusz Morawiecki reviews the start of construction of the F-35A for his country at the Lockheed Martin facility in Georgia. April 2023, USA. Photo from the politician's page
During a visit to the Lockheed Martin enterprise in the United States, Polish Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki said that he would seek to speed up the delivery of fifth-generation fighter jets to Poland.
F-35A fighter jet. Photo from open sources
Poland signed a contract to purchase 32 F-35 Lightning II aircraft on January 31, 2020. The contract value is £ 4.6 billion.
The contract assumes the obligation of the United States to train 24 pilots and 90 ground personnel.
In 2021, Poland has already started the process of training future pilots of the 5th generation F-35A Lightning II multirole fighter jet.