Finland is flying high over the unveiling of the country’s first F-35A fighter jet.
The Fort Worth-assembled stealth aircraft — one of 64 purchased by the Finnish government — attracted a large group of the country’s military, government and media representatives to Texas for a dramatic Dec. 16 display at Lockheed Martin Aeronautics Co. headquarters.
Finland’s $9.4 billion commitment to the F-35 Lightning II program, initiated in 2021, strengthens transatlantic bonds, enhances North Atlantic Treaty Organization operations and empowers “a shared future of security and prosperity,” said Greg Ulmer, president of Lockheed Martin Aeronautics.
“At Lockheed Martin, we are honored to stand shoulder to shoulder with you, our Finnish partners, to usher in a new era of capability, cooperation (and) confidence for generations to come,” he said.
Chauncey McIntosh, vice president and general manager of the F-35 program, said Finland’s F-35A jets will be equipped with cutting-edge technology for missions and deterrence.
“Finland’s clear strategic view of the future with the F-35 “connects air, land, sea, cyber and space assets, expanding situational awareness and delivers the edge, survivability and integrated deterrence — deterrence that Finland needs now and into the future,” McIntosh said.
Finland is moving ahead with bolstering its defensive capabilities with an additional investment of more than $1 billion for 405 U.S.-made, medium-range air-to-air missiles and related equipment. Country officials announced Dec. 12 the purchase of state-of-the-art air-to-air missiles from Raytheon to equip its fifth-generation F-35A models.
Greg Ulmer, president of Lockheed Martin Aeronautics, speaks at a ceremony to unveil Finland’s first F-35A fighter jet. (Eric E. Garcia | Fort Worth Report)
Global defense efforts
Finland’s involvement in the F-35 fighter jet program comes as foreign sales are ramping up with potential new customers such as Saudi Arabia, while Canada and other countries weigh whether the program is worth the escalating costs.
Israel, however, wants to block F-35 sales to Saudi Arabia and Turkey over fears that the action could risk its air superiority and early-warning advantage. Those concerns prompted Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to meet privately with Lockheed Martin executives Dec. 1 in Jerusalem, Defense Mirror reported.
U.S. military branches strongly support the F-35 program. Earlier this month, Lockheed Martin was awarded a $1.14 billion modification to a previously awarded defense contract from the Department of the Navy to fund future production of 198 F-35 jets.
The aircraft, assembled at Air Force Plant No. 4 at Naval Air Station Joint Reserve Base Fort Worth, provides a weighty local economic impact of about $20.5 billion, which includes 19,000 related jobs and $2.8 billion from 895 suppliers, according to a Lockheed Martin spokesperson.
Ulmer said Lockheed Martin is on track to deliver 180 to 190 F-35s this year. The aircraft, which recently set production records, will be around for decades with plans for continuous upgrades to technology, including the use of artificial intelligence, he said.
“The mission to support our customers with these phenomenal platforms translates directly into providing for our community,” Ulmer told the Fort Worth Report.
Finnish soprano Karita Mattila performs at an unveiling ceremony for Finland’s first F-35A fighter jet. (Eric E. Garcia | Fort Worth Report)
Nearly 300 more F-35s will be needed over the next decade to meet President Donald Trump’s interim National Defense Strategic Guidance goal of having a total fleet of 1,558 fighter jets, Breaking Defense reported. The nation has an estimated 1,271 jets in fiscal year 2026.
Twenty allied nations, including 13 in Europe, are part of the F-35 program. Sixteen are in active service, officials said.
Finland defense
With video, music, a light show and a performance by Finnish soprano Karita Mattila, a black curtain in the background dropped to unveil the jet to applause at the ceremony.
Lt. Gen. Gregory Masiello, program executive officer of the F-35 Joint Program Office, said the aircraft program is an effective deterrence to global conflicts.
“The program that I am privileged to lead is truly international, and it is more than the jet that we will see here in a moment, it is the entire industrial chain and the operational force,” Masiello said. “Our vision is that we have a globally deployed and employable F-35 fleet that is ready, it’s affordable, it’s lethally and nonlethally effective and survivable.”
Antti Häkkänen, Finland’s defense minister, speaks to Finnish reporters after the unveiling of the country’s first F-35A fighter jet. (Eric E. Garcia | Fort Worth Report)
Finnish defense minister Antti Häkkänen said the F-35 partnership will be mutually beneficial for the United States and Finland in their commitment to global security and defense.
“Finland’s military strategic location requires (the) most capable systems,” he said. “I’m confident that the F-35 and its effective sensors (and) weapons are absolutely the right choice for our operational environment.”
Maj. Gen. Timo Herranen, commander of the Finnish air force, said the jets will enable the country to respond quickly.
“What a moment, what (an) aircraft!” Herranen said.
Maj. Gen. Timo Herranen, commander of the Finnish air force, gets his picture taken in front of the country’s first F-35A jet. (Eric E. Garcia | Fort Worth Report)
Officials said the first F-35A to Finland will be delivered in early 2026. Finnish pilot training will take place at Ebbing Air National Guard Base in Fort Smith, Arkansas. Once Finland receives its 64 jets, it will have the largest F-35 fleet in northern Europe.
Herranen said the Finnish air force, over 100 years old, worked to defend Finland with bravery and skill for decades, downing more than 1,600 Soviet planes.
“Today, we begin a new era in our history while we introduce the F-35A into service,” Herranen said. “We join the world’s strongest fighter pilots. Together, we will deter and meet the need (to) defeat an adversary.”
Eric E. Garcia is a senior business reporter at the Fort Worth Report. Contact him at eric.garcia@fortworthreport.org.
News decisions are made independently of our board members and financial supporters. Read more about our editorial independence policy here.
This <a target=”_blank” href=”https://fortworthreport.org/2025/12/18/finlands-f-35-purchase-fuels-programs-boom-bolsters-global-defense/”>article</a> first appeared on <a target=”_blank” href=”https://fortworthreport.org”>Fort Worth Report</a> and is republished here under a <a target=”_blank” href=”https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nd/4.0/”>Creative Commons Attribution-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License</a>.<img src=”https://i0.wp.com/fortworthreport.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/04/cropped-favicon.png?resize=150%2C150&quality=80&ssl=1″ style=”width:1em;height:1em;margin-left:10px;”>
<img id=”republication-tracker-tool-source” src=”https://fortworthreport.org/?republication-pixel=true&post=332692&ga4=2820184429″ style=”width:1px;height:1px;”><script> PARSELY = { autotrack: false, onload: function() { PARSELY.beacon.trackPageView({ url: “https://fortworthreport.org/2025/12/18/finlands-f-35-purchase-fuels-programs-boom-bolsters-global-defense/”, urlref: window.location.href }); } } </script> <script id=”parsely-cfg” src=”//cdn.parsely.com/keys/fortworthreport.org/p.js”></script>