How Europe's F-35 Fleet Has Grown Over The Last 12 Months

Published Sep 15, 2026, 5:00 PM EDT Aaron is an aviation enthusiast and world traveler with a deep interest in aerospace history and technology. He has traveled around the world numerous times, often incorporating visits to aviation museums and historic aircraft collections into his journeys. A native of New Zealand, he is an expert in aviation and maintains a broad interest in a variety of other subjects. As of mid-2026, Lockheed Martin has delivered 1,344 F-35s, most of which have been delivered to the US Air Force and Marines, as well as some to the Navy. Exports are a minority of deliveries, but still a substantial minority, with Europe being collectively the largest export market. Deliveries to European customers are now in full swing, with the continent now possessing around a third of the F-35s it collectively plans to purchase. It should be noted that the continent is also receiving European Eurofighter Typhoon, Dassault Rafale, and Swedish Gripen fighter jets as well as a few residual US-built F-16 Block 70/72s (to Slovakia and Bulgaria, excluding Turkey). As explained below, around 40 F-35s (with some uncertainty on the exact figure) are likely to have been delivered to the continent over the last year. The F-35 is becoming one of the most common fighter jets in the world and a backbone of European airpower. Lockheed Martin's Production Rate For F-35s Credit: Brian G. Rhodes l Shutterstock In 2025, Lockheed Martin delivered a total of 191 F-35 fighter jets of all three variants. This was a record thanks to clearing a backlog of jets that had been refused delivery in 2024 due to issues with the Technology Refresh 3 update. The bulk of these jets are delivered to the United States military. Even so, a substantial number are delivered to export customers in Europe. The stable production rate is 156+ annually, with the bulk being assembled at Lockheed's main Final Assembly and Checkout facility in Fort Worth, although some are also assembled in Italy, while a number in the single digits is assembled in Japan. The number delivered in 2026 is expected to be closer to Lockheed's long term stabled 156+ delivery figure. The Italian facility has an annual capacity for 15–20 F-35s, although it's unclear how many are actually being produced there. It has assembled both F-35As and F-35Bs and provides many of the European F-35s, with the other European F-35s assembled at Fort Worth in Texas. The First Polish & Remaining Danish F-35s Credit: Department of Defense 2026 saw Poland receive the first of its order for 32 F-35A fighter jets that were ordered in 2020. Deliveries are progressing on schedule, with the first eight aircraft now in the country in addition to eight held back in the US for training. The first three arrived in Poland in May 2026 (serials 3509, 3510, and 3511), followed by five more (serials 3512-3516) in August 2026. The Polish Air Force is expecting to receive another six examples before the end of 2026. This will grow Poland's fleet to 14 F-35s, plus the eight in the US. Denmark is another notable country with a near-mature initial order. Of its order for 27 F-35As, six appear to remain in the United States for training. Around 15 have arrived at Denmark's Skrydstrup. This suggests that by early or mid 2026, Denmark had received 21 F-35s, with the remaining six expected to be delivered by the end of 2026. The first four Danish F-35s arrived at Skrydstrup Air Base in September 2023. The next four arrived in December 2024, three more in January 2025, and another four arrived later in 2025. Belgian & Dutch Deliveries Credit: The National Archives Catalog Belgium is another country that has received its first F-35s in the last 12 months. The first eight were delivered in 2024, but were held back in the US for training. The first four examples flew to Belgium in October 2025. Since then, no more F-35s appear to have been delivered, with the country scheduled to receive four per year through 2027 and five a year in 2028 and 2029. This means that 2026's batch of four will be delivered shortly. The Belgian Air Force Days says: "The first Belgian F-35s arrived in October, marking a key stage in the modernisation of the Air Force. Since their delivery, the aircraft have gradually been introduced into the fleet. This initial phase includes various internal activities aimed at integrating the aircraft safely and efficiently into its new environment. Their presence at the Belgian Air Force Days fits naturally within this broader transition period." European countries ordering F-35 (per F-35.com) Program of record Number delivered Number received in country Delivered October 2025 to September 2026 Expected remaining 2026 deliveries Belgium 34 (to increase to 45) 8 4 4 4 Czech Republic 24 none none none none Denmark 27 (to increase to 45) 21 15 4 6 Finland 64 8 none none First batch Germany 35 (to increase to 50) none none none none Greece 20 none none none none Italy 115 50-55+ 50+ 8-10 3-6 Norway 52 52 none none none Poland 32 8 8 8 6 The Netherlands 57 49+ 40+ 7-10 Unclear Switzerland 36 (possibly reducing to 30) none none none none United Kingdom 138 48 47 (one lost) 7 none Total (approx) 600 240+ Up to 200 40-45 20+ The Netherlands is nearing the completion of its program. Its F-16s have been fully retired, and it has fully transitioned to the F-35. Eight or ten aircraft remain stationed in the US for training. By the beginning of 2026, it had received a total of 49 aircraft, and it is unclear how many have been received since. Lockheed has not announced that the Netherlands has completed its program of record, suggesting that deliveries are ongoing. The United Kingdom's & Italy's Deliveries Credit: US Navy The UK has received all of its initial orders for 48 F-35B fighter jets. Of these, one was lost as it fell off the HMS Queen Elizabeth aircraft carrier in November 2021. A few remain in the US for training, and some have returned to the US for maintenance. The UK was one of the first operators of the F-35, and it uses them on its carriers, which means they require more maintenance. The UK is currently gearing up to place the next order, which will bring the total to 72 jets by around 2030. It has a program of record to eventually purchase 138 of the fighter jets. The final three F-35Bs of its Tranche 1 order were delivered in April 2026, although they were stuck in the Azores while crossing for a time. Italy is currently purchasing both the F-35A and F-35B for its air force and navy. It is somewhat difficult to estimate those exact numbers, but it appears to have around 36-43 F-35As and 14-15 F-35Bs. Only a few have been kept in the US for training (one to three), meaning that the vast majority are in Italy. Italy has increased its program of record from 90 to 115, adding another 25 jets. European Countries Not Yet Receiving F-35s Credit: US Air Force Norway became the first country to have completed its F-35 program and received its final F-35A in early April 2025. With all of its F-35s, Norway has not received any new F-35s in the last 12 months or in 2026. Norway likely has around double the number of fifth-generation fighter jets as Russia. Other countries that will not be receiving F-35s are the Czech Republic (scheduled for 2031), Greece (scheduled for 2028), Romania (scheduled for 2032), and Germany (scheduled for 2027). The first German F-35 has been built and is soon to fly as of the time of writing. Finland's first F-35A (registered JF-501) arrived at the US's Ebbing Air National Guard Base in Arkansas in January 2026 and is now training Finnish pilots. The first F-35s are expected to arrive in Finland in late 2026 and be stationed at its Lapland Air Wing in Rovaniemi. It remains unclear if the F-35 will attract any more European customers or if Turkey will be reinstated. Sweden and France are not interested and are focusing on their domestic Gripen and Rafale programs. Portugal was considered likely to order the F-35, but now it is considering the Eurofighter instead. Spain has also said it will not purchase the F-35, although this is a political decision and one that could change after the August 2027 election, depending on the result and circumstances. Over Two Dozen F-35s Were Delivered To Europe In The Last Year Credit: US Air Force All in all, 600 F-35s, mostly F-35A variants (but also some F-35Bs in the UK and Italy) are expected to end up operating in Europe. Of these, around 240 have already been delivered by Lockheed Martin to European customers, although a sizeable number, perhaps around 20-30+, are in the United States for training and/or maintenance. While there are good delivery numbers for some countries, there are not for others. Around 40–45 F-35s may have been delivered to their home base in Europe over the last 12 months. A few more may have been delivered, but then held back in the US for training. Perhaps 20 or so more could be delivered in the remaining months of 2026, but it's unclear. To put this in perspective, this is considerably more than France's Dassault Rafale annual production rate, which was 25 in 2025 (most exported). It is likely larger than Russia's combined Su-30/34/35 and Su-57 production rates. Russia's production rates have been estimated at 20–40 in recent years. The US Air Force has been purchasing the F-35 at a rate of roughly 40–50 in recent years.