Lockheed Martin pitches F-35 upgrade as stopgap to next-gen fighters

Speaking on Lockheed Martin’s 2025 Q2 earnings call, CEO Jim Taiclet predicted that an advanced F-35 upgrade package could deliver “80 percent of [Next Generation Air Dominance] capability at 50 percent of the price.” Leveraging stealth, sensors, and propulsion technologies developed for NGAD—which Lockheed lost to Boeing earlier this year—the proposed F-35 evolution aims to close the performance gap until the F-47 enters service, according to Air & Space Forces Magazine.

This push comes after Lockheed announced $1.6 billion in quarterly losses, largely tied to a classified Skunk Works project, and as congressional committees debate restoring cuts to the DOD’s requested FY26 F-35 purchase. Deliveries—paused for a year due to Tech Refresh 3 delays—resumed last week, with Lockheed targeting up to 190 jets in 2025. International demand remains strong, with new orders from the UK and Belgium reported.

While the Pentagon’s FY2026 budget asks for just thirty-seven F-35s, the House Appropriations Committee is proposing sixty-nine and the Senate Armed Services Committee fifty-seven. Lawmakers support sustaining F-35 procurement but are pushing for higher readiness and modernization rather than continued fleet expansion.

Details on how much of the so-called “Ferrari” F-35 upgrade is feasible—and how it would be funded—remain unclear. The Joint Program Office called the proposal “entirely notional,” with DOD yet to publicly endorse the concept.