{"id":34561,"date":"2025-11-05T17:16:17","date_gmt":"2025-11-05T17:16:17","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/34561\/"},"modified":"2025-11-05T17:16:17","modified_gmt":"2025-11-05T17:16:17","slug":"florida-mayors-urge-support-for-f-35-fighter-jets-citing-huge-economic-impact","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/34561\/","title":{"rendered":"Florida Mayors urge support for F-35 fighter jets, citing huge economic impact"},"content":{"rendered":"

Nearly 30 Mayors from across Florida, including Mayors from every major metro area, have signed onto a letter supporting the continued use of the F-35 Lightning II, which has faced criticism over software bugs and delayed upgrades<\/a>.<\/p>\n

The letter, sent to U.S. Sen. Rick Scott, highlights the fifth-generation fighter jets\u2019 economic impact on the state, noting that \u201cthe presence of F-35 facilities and the associated supply chain\u201d creates $21 billion in economic impact each year in Florida.<\/p>\n

While criticisms have been leveled, the F-35, flown since 2006, is the cornerstone of the defense manufacturing industry, with a $72 billion economic impact across the U.S.<\/p>\n

Florida\u2019s economic impact related to the fighter jets represents a significant share of the impact nationwide. That\u2019s largely due to Florida\u2019s presence as a manufacturing hub for parts used in the aircraft.<\/p>\n

The jets create a $7 billion economic impact in Orange County, supporting more than direct 1,800 jobs and more than 5,200 indirect jobs. Brevard County follows, with a $1.8 billion economic impact sustaining 6,400 direct jobs and more than 18,000 indirect jobs.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

Elsewhere in the state, the impact is less profound, but still significant. Pinellas County sees an $88 million economic impact, while Seminole County enjoys an $87 million impact. Okaloosa County\u2019s economic impact sits at $73 million.<\/p>\n

\u201cMore than 170 Florida companies build parts for the F-35 and many of them are small and veteran-owned businesses\u201d the Mayors point out in their letter.<\/p>\n

While the fighter jets are assembled at a Lockheed Martin manufacturing facility in Fort Worth, Texas, more than 1,900 companies contribute to the jets, and most of the supply chain companies are small businesses.<\/p>\n

Some 300,000 parts are manufactured at various plants, many in small towns, before the parts make their way to Texas for final assembly.<\/p>\n

The parts are highly engineered and often complex assemblies with rigorous specifications. And that fuels jobs in skilled workforce trades, including engineering and machining, which draw talented graduates and craftsmen to jobs that pay well and spur economic activity.<\/p>\n

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\u201cLocal businesses, from restaurants and retail to housing and services, all benefit from the economic activity generated by the program\u2019s presence,\u201d the letter explains.<\/p>\n

The manufactured parts that eventually make up the F-35 are what provide the fighter jets\u2019 stealth capabilities and ability to share information from the battlefield in real time.<\/p>\n

These design features have drawn 19 allies to partner with the United States to fly the F-35 and work collaboratively on the battlefield, making the F-35 a critical national security asset to many parts of the world.<\/p>\n

Earlier this year Poland and Israel demonstrated the F-35\u2019s prowess by repelling attempts by Russia and Iran to penetrate their respective airspaces.<\/p>\n

\u201cSupporting this program is an investment in our defense capabilities, which in turn protects our economic interests and ensures peace and stability,\u201d the Mayors wrote.<\/p>\n

They make the case that support for the F-35 must come from Congress in the form of increased procurement funding in the federal budget and vocal advocacy for the program.<\/p>\n

\u201cSupport for the F-35 is intrinsically linked to the economic prosperity of our communities and the security of our nation,\u201d the letter ends.<\/p>\n

Signatories (in the order they are listed on the letter) include:<\/p>\n

\u2014 Orlando Mayor Buddy Dyer.<\/p>\n

\u2014 Crestview Mayor J.B. Whitten.<\/p>\n

\u2014 Miami Mayor Francis Suarez.<\/p>\n

\u2014 Melbourne Beach Mayor Alison Dennington.<\/p>\n

\u2014 Tampa Mayor Jane Castor.<\/p>\n

\u2014 St. Petersburg Mayor Ken Welch.<\/p>\n

\u2014 Jacksonville Mayor Donna Deegan.<\/p>\n

\u2014 Coral Gables Mayor Vince Lago.<\/p>\n

\u2014 Cape Coral Mayor John Gunter.<\/p>\n

\u2014 Doral Mayor Christi Fraga.<\/p>\n

\u2014 Winter Springs Mayor Kevin McCann.<\/p>\n

\u2014 West Miami Mayor Eric Diaz-Padron.<\/p>\n

\u2014 Titusville Mayor Andrew Connors.<\/p>\n

\u2014 Fort Lauderdale Mayor Dean Trantalis.<\/p>\n

\u2014 Haines City Mayor Morris West.<\/p>\n

\u2014 Panama City Mayor Allen Branch.<\/p>\n

\u2014 Fort Myers Mayor Kevin Anderson.<\/p>\n

\u2014 Apopka Mayor Bryan Nelson.<\/p>\n

\u2014 Altamonte Springs Mayor Pat Bates.<\/p>\n

\u2014 Homestead Mayor Steven Losner.<\/p>\n

\u2014 Riviera Beach Mayor Doug Lawson.<\/p>\n

\u2014 Panama City Beach Mayor Stuart Tettemer.<\/p>\n

\u2014 Keystone Heights Mayor Nina Rodenroth.<\/p>\n

\u2014 Niceville Mayor Daniel Henkel.<\/p>\n

\u2014 Miami Lakes Mayor Joshua Dieguez.<\/p>\n

\u2014 Fort Walton Beach Mayor Nic Allegretto.<\/p>\n

\u2014 Hallandale Beach Mayor Joy Cooper.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Nearly 30 Mayors from across Florida, including Mayors from every major metro area, have signed onto a letter…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":34562,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[24118,24119,24120,24121,8132,24122,24123,13776,5890,24124,24125,24126,28,30,29,15579,24127,5756,24128,24129,24130,2346,24131,24132,24133,24134,24135,24136,3856,24137,24138,24139],"class_list":{"0":"post-34561","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-florida","8":"tag-alison-dennington","9":"tag-allen-branch","10":"tag-andrew-connors","11":"tag-bryan-nelson","12":"tag-buddy-dyer","13":"tag-christi-fraga","14":"tag-daniel-henkel","15":"tag-dean-trantalis","16":"tag-donna-deegan","17":"tag-doug-lawson","18":"tag-eric-diaz-padron","19":"tag-f-35-lightning-ii","20":"tag-florida","21":"tag-florida-headlines","22":"tag-florida-news","23":"tag-francis-suarez","24":"tag-j-b-whitten","25":"tag-jane-castor","26":"tag-john-gunter","27":"tag-joshua-dieguez","28":"tag-joy-cooper","29":"tag-ken-welch","30":"tag-kevin-anderson","31":"tag-kevin-mccann","32":"tag-morris-west","33":"tag-nic-allegretto","34":"tag-nina-rodenroth","35":"tag-pat-bates","36":"tag-rick-scott","37":"tag-steven-losner","38":"tag-stuart-tettemer","39":"tag-vince-lago"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/34561","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=34561"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/34561\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/34562"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=34561"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=34561"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=34561"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}