Harking back to World War II’s mass-produced fleets of fighters, bombers, and cargo aircraft, the Los Angeles Times reports that the new F-35 Joint Strike Fighter will be the first assembly line produced military aircraft in a generation. Northrop Grumman will have one line in Palmdale, Calif., to assemble the fuselages, which then will go to prime contractor Lockheed Martin in Fort Worth, Tex., where another line will mate the fuselages to other parts. Northrop anticipates turning out one center fuselage per day. The companies plan to establish the assembly lines over the next few years.
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.
