The first Lockheed Martin F-35A Lightning II for Finland seen on its maiden flight on 9 December, prior to its official roll-out days later on 16 December. (Lockheed Martin)
Lockheed Martin rolled out the first F-35A Lightning II Joint Strike Fighter (JSF) for Finland during a ceremony at the manufacturer’s Fort Worth facility in the United States.
The milestone on 16 December was attended by Finnish President Alexander Stubb, as well as Defence Minister Antti Häkkänen and Finnish Air Force Commander Major General Timo Herranen
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The Finnish Air Force is to receive 64 F-35A aircraft to replace its 55 Boeing F/A-18Cs and seven F/A-18D Hornet fighters, selecting the ‘fifth-generation’ type under the HX fighter replacement competition. Finland’s F-35As are being manufactured in Lots 17–22, and will be delivered from late 2025 at the Technical Refresh-3 (TR-3) standard that enables the Block 4 capability.
Aircraft JF-501/MF-1 and the seven aircraft following it will be initially flown to Eglin Air Force Base (AFB) in Florida, where they will be used for Finnish pilot and maintainer training. The Finnish Air Force will receive its first F-35A fighters into the Lapland Air Wing at the Rovaniemi airbase by the end of 2026.
The milestone of the roll-out came days after Häkkänen, on 12 December, authorised the Finnish Defence Forces to procure an undisclosed number of RTX AIM-120D-3 Advanced Medium-Range Air-to-Air Missiles (AMRAAMs) from the US for use aboard the F-35A. In September 2025, the US Congress approved a Foreign Military Sale to Finland of AMRAAMs.
“This procurement will give Finland the latest and most advanced variant of AMRAAM, which will improve our ability to respond to threats in our operating environment,” Häkkänen said.
For more information on Europe’s F-35 programmes, please see
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