Finland’s first F-35A multirole fighter was presented to the public at a rollout ceremony

Finland’s first F-35A multirole fighter, designated JF-501, was presented to the public at a rollout ceremony at Lockheed Martin’s production facility in Fort Worth on 16 December.

The first Finnish F-35A multirole fighter has completed its final assembly at Lockheed Martin’s factory in Forth Worth, Texas. The JF-501 was presented to the public at a festive rollout ceremony. Minister of Defence Antti Häkkänen, Commander of the Finnish Air Force, Major General Timo Herranen and Colonel (ret.) Henrik Elo, Director of the F-35 Programme were invited to the event, among others. The event was hosted by President of Lockheed Martin Aeronautics Greg Ulmer. All in all, around 200 invited guests from the Finnish and US defence administrations and industries and media representatives from these countries participated in the ceremony organized by Lockheed Martin.

– We have worked long and hard to get to this moment and we look forward to starting F-35 operations next year, said Major General Timo Herranen right after the ceremony.

Building the JF-501 started in 2023. In October 2024, the progress of the production was celebrated at a forward fuselage signing event at Lockheed Martin’s Fort Worth plant. In September 2025, the JF-501 was installed with a Pratt & Whitney F135 engine, in October, it completed final assembly, and in November, it received its final finishes including paint and stealth coating.  

The JF-501 conducted its maiden flight on 8th December as part of factory test flights. 

After the factory’s ground and flight tests, the US Defense Contract Management Agency, DCMA will conduct test flights of its own. Having passed these tests, the aircraft transfers to Finnish ownership. In early 2026, the JF-501 will be ferried to Ebbing Air National Guard Base, Arkansas where the first F-35A fighters will be introduced into Finnish Air Force service as part of the practical part of the F-35 initial training. When the initial training of the Air Force personnel conducted in detachments comes to an end in the United States, the JF-501 and other aircraft used in the training will be flown to Finland. 

Together – capabilities to the Finnish Defence Forces and protection for the whole Finland

The F-35 Programme is critical for Finland’s defence capability and the Air Force’s combat capability into the 2060s. Since April 2023, the Air Force has been operating as a full member of NATO also in tasks of the Alliance.  

– This is not just about the new aircraft. It is a step to a stronger, more modern and more agile defence. The F-35 has state-of-the art capabilities to enhance our national and collective deterrence and defence, Commander of the Finnish Defence Forces, General Janne Jaakkola sums up.

– In the Finnish operating environment, survivability, lethality and cooperation are imperative. The F-35 will deliver unmatched capability in all of these areas. It will bring our defence to a whole new level of capability, Major General Timo Herranen sums up referring to the capabilities introduced by the new fleet of fighters.

The multirole fighter fleet is one of the cornerstones of Finland’s defence. In peace time, the main task of the fighter fleet is to safeguard the territorial integrity of the Finnish State by participating in the policing of territorial integrity conducted by the Air Force 24/7.  Defensive counter air operations and supporting Army and Navy combat operations with air protection and firepower and by compiling and sharing operational picture and target data constitute its main task in emergency conditions. 

– The F-35 and its capabilities are a clear and very important force multiplier from the perspective of Army operations. We are well on our way to get everything set up when the first flight of F-35 lands at Rovaniemi airbase; we’ll have JAGIC and defensive counterair to do the integration, says Commander of the Finnish Army, Lieutenant General Pasi Välimäki.

– I’m convinced that the F-35 fleet will provide, as they say, a giant leap in our maritime situational awareness and our air–sea battle concept. I’m eager to have the remarkable F-35 capabilities support our national and allied naval operations in the Baltic Sea, the Commander of the Finnish Navy, Rear Admiral Tuomas Tiilikainen says.

An operator of the F-35, Finland is a part of the community of operators of the multinational F-35 program. The twenty member states of the F-35 Programme cover a geographically significant area. Of the thirteen European F-35 operators, twelve are also NATO member countries, which deepens their military compatibility and interoperability even more. 

– Finland is a NATO member and committed to act as a dependable defence provider in the northern flank. Finland is investing heavily in national industrial capabilities through industrial participation, we believe that our investment and highly capable defence industry can benefit the F-35 program not just locally but also at a more global level, Minister of Defence Antti Häkkänen says.

The F-35 is a joint capability operated by the Air Force

The type designation JF of the Air Force F-35A fleet comes from Joint Fighter in English, which underlines the added value and importance of the aircraft for all the Services. All aircraft in the fleet will receive registration numbers from JF-501 to JF-564.

– The F-35 can conduct a diverse range of tasks the most important ones being air combat, participating in Army and Navy combat operations, projecting power deep into enemy territory, and intelligence and sharing of situational picture. With its complex sensors, the F-35 is capable of collecting different data in significant amounts from its environment which can be used for operational picture generation and combat of all the Services, Commander of the Air Force Timo Herranen says describing the capabilities brought by the new F-35 to all the Services. 

– In the planning and operating of the Defence Forces, cross-service cooperation and joint operating in the air, on the ground and at sea and also in the space and cyber will increase, he continues. 

All the paintings and markings on the Air Force Joint Fighters will be low observable, which means that the colours blue and white of the cockade of the national emblem, for example, are toned down into shades of grey. The vertical stabilizers of 62 Joint Fighters will carry the emblem of the Air Force. To cherish the traditions of Fighter Squadrons 11 and 31, the outer surfaces of the vertical stabilizers of fighter jets JF-511 and JF-531 will be marked with squadron emblems wisent and lynx in the stead of the Air Force emblem. 

Currently, a total of 16 Joint Fighters are in production at Lockheed Martin and its partner companies.  

The first eight fighters to be completed for Finland will be delivered to Ebbing Air National Guard Base. Aircraft with registration numbers starting from JF-509 will be delivered directly to Finland. 

Credible air defence for the decades to come

Pursuit of development has been a central feature in the history of the Finnish Air Force from the very beginning. Upgrades on the fleet carried out according to need ensure the Air Force’s  ability to meet its statutory tasks. 

The F-35 Programme is a continuation of the HX Fighter Programme  launched in 2015. Its purpose is to replace the capability produced to our defence system by the F/A-18 Hornet fighter jets, currently the mainstay of the Finnish Air Force. 

– The objective of the HX Programme competitive bidding was to build with each tenderer a comprehensive solution meeting Finland’s requirements that would produce the best possible capability for the Finnish defence system. The competitive bidding phase including the evaluation of the candidates was carried out in the defence administration with exceptional transparency and diligence, says Major General Herranen. 

– The F-35 is the best solution for the Air Force in terms of military performance meeting Finland’s requirements. It produces significant capability to the entire defence system and improves the preventive capability of our defence, he sums up. 

The HX Programme evolves into the F-35 Programme

2014 A preliminary working group for the HX Programme set out to work and achieved a basic examination involving the replacement of the capability of the Hornet fleet. 

2015 In June, the Minister of Defence received the final report of the examination. It included a proposal for replacing the capability of the Hornet fleet with a solution based on a multirole fighter. In October, a decision was taken to launch the HX Programme. 

2016 In April, Requests for Information included in the procurement process were sent to the defence administrations of the United Kingdom, France, Sweden and the United States.

2017 The HX Programme received its primary guidance in The Government Defence Report.

2018 In April, preliminary Requests for Quotations in the procurement process were sent to the administrations of four States to be forwarded to all five companies which had responded to the Request for Information. Quotations were requested regarding the following fighter jets: Boeing F/A-18 Super Hornet (United States), Dassault Rafale (France), Eurofighter Typhoon (United Kingdom), Lockheed Martin F-35 (United States) and Saab Gripen (Sweden).

2019 It was included in the Government Programme that the capabilities of the Hornet fleet would be replaced in full, and a procurement decision would be taken in 2021. A Revised Request for Quotation was sent to the five tenderers in October. 

2020 Revised quotations were received in January. In January-February, test event HX Challenge was organized in Finland as part of the testing and test flight programme involving the capabilities of the candidates. 

2021

• Requests for Best and Final Offers were sent in January. In the course of the spring, system assessments and capability assessments based on a war game were conducted. The assessment of the development potential of the life cycle of the HX fleet started.  
• Best and Final Offers were received by the end of April. After this, the system and capability assessments were considered against the commercial quotations. A so-called silent phase started with the tenderers meaning that the contents of the tenders were no longer negotiated. 
• An operational simulation-supported war gaming phase was conducted in the course of June-October to determine the capabilities of each candidate.  
• In the final military capabilities assessment, the candidates were compared with one another for the first time and ranked. Only candidates which had passed all the areas of assessment relevant for decision making (security of supply, life cycle costs and industrial participation) proceeded to this phase. A final assessment was made in a collective group decision-making procedure in November.  
• In December, the Defence Forces made a procurement proposal for the capability solution it deemed the best. The Government approved it in its plenary session taking a procurement decision concerning the HX system on 10 December 2021. On this same date, the Government mandated the Finnish Defence Forces Logistics Command to conclude a procurement contract with the United States  administration on Finland’s next multirole fighter, the Lockheed Martin F-35A Lightning II.

2022 

• The first procurement contracts were signed
• The HX Programme was renamed the F-35 Programme

2023 

• The manufacture of Finland’s first F-35A fighters, or Joint Fighters, started in 

2024

• Remarkable procurement contracts concerning F-35 weapon systems were concluded including:  AARGM-ER and JASSM-ER missiles and JDAM- and SDB I ammunition

2025 

• The first members of the Finnish Air Force aircraft maintenance personnel started their F-35 initial training in Eglin Air Force Base in Florida.
• The first JF is completed at the Lockheed Martin facility in Fort Worth, Texas. 

2026

• In early 2026, the first Finnish Air Force pilots start their F-35 initial training in Eglin AFB.
• In the spring, the first Finnish F-35 fighters will be introduced into service with the Finnish Air Force in Ebbing Air National Guard Base in Fort Smith, Arkansas as part of the F-35 initial training of Finnish personnel.  
• In late 2026, the Air Force will receive Finland’s first F-35 fighters at Lapland Air Wing in Rovaniemi.  

2027

• By the end of the year, the F-35 will reach initial operational capability.  

2028

• The F-35 will have reached initial operational capability (IOC). 
• Karelia Air Wing will receive its first F-35 fighters. 

2030

• The F-35 will achieve full operational capability (FOC) by the end of 2030. F/A-18 C/D Hornets will retire in phases alongside the introduction of the F-35.

2031-  

• JF or the F-35 system will operate as the mainstay of the Air Force.

Read more about the F-35 Programme and its phases starting from its beginning: F-35-Programme - Defence Forces