When it comes to military prowess, the fighter jet is one of the most integral parts of a country’s military. There are several categories of combat aircraft – bombers, fighters, and attack are just a few – and they comprise a significant portion of many military powers throughout the world. The United States comes out on top with its number of aircraft in use – 13,300 – of which more than 1,300 are fighter jets.
When it comes to fighter jets, the pinnacle of American engineering and technology is the F-35 Lightning II Fighter Jet. Designed and manufactured by Lockheed Martin, in partnership with BAE Systems and Northrop Grumman. Although the Lightning II first came out in 2006, it didn’t enter service until 2015, first with the U.S. Marines, and then with the U.S. Air Force in 2016. It occupies an auspicious position as one of the preeminent fighter jets of the fifth generation of fighter aircraft, and militaries around the world are trying to get their hands on it. (These are the world’s future military aircraft.)
The F-35 Lightning II is part of the fifth generation fighters and employs features like stealth, high maneuverability, and supercruise that were not available to previous generations of aircraft. It is incredibly versatile in terms of its weapons payload, and it can carry up to 18,000 pounds of these munitions. The cost ranges depending on the variant, of which there are three.
The stock standard variant is the F-35A and costs roughly $110 million per unit. The B variant costs slightly more at around $136 million per unit but it incorporates a short take-off and vertical landing system, which allows it to take off from extremely short runways as well as land vertically. The C variant is designed to be launched from aircraft carriers and costs about $117 million per unit.
24/7 Wall St. reviewed the 2024 World Air Forces report from FlightGlobal, an aviation and aerospace industry publication to identify the countries that buy the most F-35 Lightning II fighter jets. Countries were ranked according to the number of F-35 jets on order. We included supplemental information regarding active F-35s in respective fleets, military branches that will be using these aircraft, and what variants of the F-35 are on order or are currently in service.
Only 20 countries have ordered or actually employ these fighter jets and all are allies of the United States. As such, it is highly unlikely that adversarial nations like China or Russia would purchase or come to possess these aircraft. (Here is every major fighter plane flown by the U.S. Air Force.)
Here is a look at the countries that are buying the most F-35 Lightning II fighter jets:
20. Singapore
Source: secdef / Flickr
- Aircraft on order: 12
- Active aircraft: 0
- Military branches: Republic of Singapore Air Force
- Variant(s): F-35
19. Norway
Source: ajw1970 / Flickr
- Aircraft on order: 12
- Active aircraft: 40
- Military branches: Royal Norwegian Air Force
- Variant(s): F-35A
18. Denmark
Source: my_public_domain_photos / Flickr
- Aircraft on order: 17
- Active aircraft: 10
- Military branches: Royal Danish Air Force
- Variant(s): F-35A
17. Netherlands
Source: my_public_domain_photos / Flickr
- Aircraft on order: 18
- Active aircraft: 34
- Military branches: Royal Netherlands Air Force
- Variant(s): F-35A
16. Czech Republic
Source: usnavy / Flickr
- Aircraft on order: 24
- Active aircraft: 0
- Military branches: Czech Air Force
- Variant(s): F-35A
15. South Korea
Source: bbevren / iStock via Getty Images
- Aircraft on order: 25
- Active aircraft: 40
- Military branches: Republic of Korea Air Force
- Variant(s): F-35A
14. Poland
Source: my_public_domain_photos / Flickr
- Aircraft on order: 32
- Active aircraft: 0
- Military branches: Polish Air Force
- Variant(s): F-35A
13. Belgium
Source: my_public_domain_photos / Flickr
- Aircraft on order: 34
- Active aircraft: 0
- Military branches: Belgian Air Component
- Variant(s): F-35A
12. Germany
Source: my_public_domain_photos / Flickr
- Aircraft on order: 35
- Active aircraft: 0
- Military branches: German Air Force
- Variant(s): F-35A
11. Israel
Source: 77258709@N06 / Flickr
- Aircraft on order: 36
- Active aircraft: 39
- Military branches: Israel Air and Space Force
- Variant(s): F-35I
10. Switzerland
- Aircraft on order: 36
- Active aircraft: 0
- Military branches: Swiss Air Force
- Variant(s): F-35A
9. Australia
Source: usairforce / Flickr
- Aircraft on order: 37
- Active aircraft: 63
- Military branches: Royal Australian Air Force
- Variant(s): F-35A
8. Romania
- Aircraft on order: 48
- Active aircraft: 0
- Military branches: Romanian Air Force
- Variant(s): F-35A
7. United Arab Emirates
Source: my_public_domain_photos / Flickr
- Aircraft on order: 50
- Active aircraft: 0
- Military branches: United Arab Emirates Air Force
- Variant(s): F-35A
6. Finland
- Aircraft on order: 64
- Active aircraft: 0
- Military branches: Finnish Air Force
- Variant(s): F-35A
5. Italy
Source: my_public_domain_photos / Flickr
- Aircraft on order: 65
- Active aircraft: 25
- Military branches: Italian Air Force, Italian Navy
- Variant(s): F-35A/B
4. Canada
Source: Public Domain / Flickr
- Aircraft on order: 88
- Active aircraft: 0
- Military branches: Royal Canadian Air Force
- Variant(s): F-35A
3. United Kingdom
Source: Matt Cardy / Getty Images
- Aircraft on order: 105
- Active aircraft: 29
- Military branches: Royal Air Force
- Variant(s): F-35B
2. Japan
- Aircraft on order: 110
- Active aircraft: 36
- Military branches: Japan Air Self-Defence Force
- Variant(s): F-35A/B
1. United States
Source: my_public_domain_photos / Flickr
- Aircraft on order: 1,855
- Active aircraft: 553
- Military branches: United States Air Force, United States Marine Corps, United States Navy
- Variant(s): F-35A/B/C
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