Lockheed wants to turn F-35 into a ‘Ferrari’ with sixth-gen tech

Lockheed Martin’s CEO says he wants the F-35 to deliver 80% of the F-47’s capabilities at half the cost

Lockheed Martin’s CEO, James Taiclet, said he wants to improve the F-35 so it can match 80% of sixth-generation aircraft capabilities. JOHN THYS / AFP via Getty Images Lockheed Martin didn’t win the bid for America’s next-generation fighter, but its CEO still wants to build a jet that’s in almost the same league. At the company’s first-quarter earnings call on Tuesday, James Taiclet said he has set a new goal for his staff: To soup up the F-35 s…

Lockheed Martin's CEO says he wants the F-35 to deliver 80% of the F-47's capabilities at half the cost

Lockheed Martin's CEO, James Taiclet, said he wants to improve the F-35 so it can match 80% of sixth-generation aircraft capabilities.JOHN THYS / AFP via Getty ImagesJames Taiclet says he has a new idea for Lockheed Martin: Beef up the F-35 with its failed bid for NGAD.Lockheed Martin lost the bid for the NGAD, now called the F-47, to Boeing.Taiclet wants his engineers to integrate tech and ideas from their sixth-gen research into the F-35.Lockh…

Lockheed wants to turn F-35 into a ‘Ferrari’ with sixth-gen tech

Better passive infrared, stealth and longer-range weapons are among the sixth-generation technologies Lockheed might incorporate into the F-35.

Lockheed Martin will not protest NGAD decision, will focus instead on enhancing F-35

Lockheed Martin will not protest the Air Force's recent decision to award Boeing a contract to build the F-47 Next Generation Air Dominance platform, CEO Jim Taiclet told investors today. The company will instead focus on adding sixth-generation capability improvements to its fifth-generation offerings, like the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter and F-22 Raptor. “We are not going to protest the NGAD decision of the U.S. government,” Taiclet said during …

The plan was announced by Lockheed Martin CEO Jim Taiclet, and the matter [is described by Defense News](https://www.defensenews.com/air/2025/04/22/lockheed-wants-to-turn-f-35-into-a-ferrari-with-sixth-gen-tech/). The head of the American company stated that the company is able to **transplant technical solutions developed in the Next Generation Air Dominance (NGAD) fighter program to the F-35.** Thanks to this, the Lightning II is to receive 80…

Lockheed aims to turbocharge the F-35 and turn it into a "Ferrari"

The latest news on the United States. After stepping back from the Air Force's Next Generation Air Dominance race, Lockheed Martin is redirecting its efforts to breathe new life into the F-35 and F-22 Raptor. The idea is to fuse cutting-edge tech, developed for the now-lost NGAD contract, into these seasoned fighters, effectively creating a "fifth-gen-plus" aircraft. Executives believe this could yield near-sixth-gen performance at a fraction o…