Britain to receive F-35, the first delivered by US to an ally

By Chris Carroll

Stars and Stripes

Published: July 18, 2012

The F-35 joint strike fighter.

U.S. Army

WASHINGTON — The United States will soon hand over the first F-35 Joint Strike Fighter slated for international delivery to Britain, defense secretaries from both countries announced Wednesday at the Pentagon.
They said the delivery scheduled for Thursday is a sign the embattled, costly stealth fighter program is back on track and a symbol of the nations’ tight bond, which Defense Minister Philip Hammond called “our most important defense relationship.”
Britain agreed more than a decade ago to buy 138 of the B variant of the Lockheed-Martin aircraft, which is capable of vertical takeoff and landing, for deployment from aircraft carriers. But ballooning costs and missed deadlines have since raised doubts in the United States and among nations that had agreed to purchase the fighter about the overall program’s viability.
Former defense secretary Robert Gates placed the program on “probation” to force corrections, a status lifted by the current secretary, Leon Panetta, in January.


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