The US Navy has awarded Lockheed Martin a $3.6-billion contract modification to continue maintaining and supporting the global F-35 fighter fleet through 2026.
The award exercises an option on an existing contract for the F-35 Lightning II Joint Strike Fighter Air Systems.
Under the modification, Lockheed Martin will provide continued support spanning ground maintenance, depot activities, supply chain management, and reliability and maintainability efforts.
The scope also includes pilot and maintainer training, training system sustainment, and operation and maintenance of the program’s automatic logistics information systems.
Most of the work will be carried out in Fort Worth, Texas, which accounts for about 57 percent of the effort. Additional work will take place in Florida, South Carolina, Georgia, and California.
Funding comes from a mix of fiscal 2026 operations and maintenance accounts for the Air Force, Marine Corps, and Navy, along with contributions from foreign military sales customers and non-Department of Defense program partners.
Of the roughly $1.2 billion obligated at the time of award, more than half will expire at the end of the current fiscal year.
F-35 Lightning II Joint Strike Fighter Air Systems
The F-35 Lightning II Joint Strike Fighter Air Systems extend well beyond the aircraft itself, relying on a tightly integrated network of manufacturers responsible for propulsion, sensors, electronic warfare, software, and sustainment infrastructure.
Key subsystems are handled by a group of major defense firms.
Pratt & Whitney, a division of RTX, supplies and upgrades the F135 engine, which has been undergoing durability and reliability improvements to address wear issues as flight hours across the fleet increase.
Northrop Grumman is responsible for the aircraft’s AN/APG-81 AESA radar, which has received software and processing updates to improve detection range, electronic attack capability, and integration with other onboard sensors.
Electronic warfare upgrades are led by BAE Systems, which develops and maintains the F-35’s AN/ASQ-239 Barracuda system. The suite provides threat detection, electronic attack, and self-protection, and has been incrementally upgraded to address evolving air defense systems.
