The Navy version of the Joint Strike Fighter, the F-35C, has completed its air system critical design review, paving the way for the carrier-variant to enter low rate initial production. In a Lockheed Martin release, Air Force Brig. Gen. C.R. Davis, JSF program executive officer, says, “Completion of this design review is a very significant milestone; the die is now fully cast for the unique, three-variant Joint Strike Fighter program envisioned when the planning began in the late 1990s.” The F-35C has larger wings and a more robust internal structure than the other two variants—the Air Force’s F-35A conventional takeoff and landing aircraft and the Marine Corps’ F-35B, short takeoff and vertical landing version—to handle repeated catapult launches and arrested recoveries on a carrier deck. Lockheed has begun fabrication of the first production JSFs, two F-35A models.
Golden Dome Details Begin to Emerge
Dec. 7, 2025
The Golden Dome air and missile defense shield to protect the United States will have some “operational capability” in 2028, the program’s leader said Dec. 6 at the Reagan National Defense Forum.
