BAE Systems has begun assembling the aft fuselage of the first short takeoff and vertical landing F-35 Joint Strike Fighter at the company’s Samlesbury, England facility, officials said July 5. BAE expects to deliver the horizontal and vertical tails of the STOVL version—destined primarily for the Marine Corps, but USAF also plans to buy some—to Lockheed Martin’s Fort Worth, Tex., facility for final assembly by the end of the year. BAE also is working on the F-35’s electronic warfare systems suite and advanced low-observable apertures and countermeasure systems.
The rate of building B-21 bombers would speed up if the fiscal 2026 defense budget passes. But it remains unclear how much capacity would be added, and whether the Air Force would simply build the bombers faster, or buy more.
