U.S. Rep. Craig Goldman (R-Fort Worth) turned fighter pilot for brief moment on Monday, joining Lockheed Martin, other local elected officials, and community leaders at The Ashton Depot downtown in the Aviation and Defense Capital of Texas for an update on the Lockheed Martin (NYSE: LMT) F-35 Lightning II fighter jet, the most advanced and connected combat aircraft in production today and a major economic driver for the state.

The F-35 program generates more than $9.9 billion in annual economic impact in Texas and supports over 49,000 jobs statewide each year.

“The production of the F-35 is a great source of pride for the city of Fort Worth and the state of Texas,” said Goldman, a member of the U.S. House Energy and Commerce Committee. “Thousands of men and women go to work every day to construct the world’s most lethal and advanced fighter jet.

“The ongoing technological innovation of the F-35 program truly highlights America’s military might, and I’m confident the United States and our allies will continue to benefit for decades to come.”

During the visit, Goldman took a virtual flight in the F-35’s cockpit demonstrator, experiencing firsthand the jet’s agility, stealth, and advanced communications and sensor-fusion systems. The immersive simulator demonstrates how the aircraft’s integrated technology gives pilots decisive air dominance — and helps ensure that “men and women in uniform perform their missions and come home safely,” Lockheed Martin officials noted.

More than 1,200 F-35s are operational around the globe, and the fleet has surpassed 1 million flight hours, operating from 50 bases worldwide across 10 nations.

The F-35 Lightning II was designed as a family of aircraft with three distinct variants tailored to each branch’s mission:

  • F-35A (Air Force): conventional takeoff and landing version; first used in combat April 30, 2019, striking ISIS targets in Iraq during Operation Inherent Resolve.

  • F-35B (Marines): short-takeoff/vertical-landing variant; used in combat between 2018–20 in Afghanistan against Taliban and ISIS positions.

  • F-35C (Navy): carrier-based variant; saw first combat in November 2024 when Marine squadrons struck Houthi-controlled weapons facilities in Yemen.

Israel, the first nation to use the aircraft in combat, deployed its F-35I “Adir” in May 2018 against Iranian-linked sites in Syria. In October 2024, Israeli F-35s were also reported to have struck Iranian S-300 air-defense systems and missile-production infrastructure roughly 1,200 miles from base — underscoring the fighter’s long-range reach and operational maturity.